Kansas will host its first NASCAR Cup Series race of 2024 this Sunday. The event will be the 12th race of the year and will officially mark a third of the racing season done by the time the sun sets. With the journey so far being a two-horse race between Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports, other teams will be dying to find a route to the victory lane. Enhancing their desire to win will be a huge purse filled with the good old dollar.
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Fox Sports reporter Bob Pockrass confirmed on his X handle that teams stand to win a share in the bucket of $7,894,315 at the Sunflower State. This number includes the payouts for past performances, contingency fees, year-end points fund contribution, and so on. Notably, the prize for this race in 2023 was $7,536,752. The upgrade follows a trend similar to what was seen in most of the races this year.
The Craftsman Truck Series is also scheduled to race on the 1.5-mile Kansas Speedway this weekend. The prize pool for the third-tier is fixed at $770,294. The race will unfold on Saturday at 8:00 p.m. ET. The Cup Series race will follow on Sunday at 3:00 p.m. ET. The events can be followed on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
Will the dominance of Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports finally end this weekend?
A driver from the garages of Coach Gibbs or Rick Hendrick has won 9 of the first 11 races this year. The two teams have a combined five poles, nine wins, 29 top-5s, and 2,185 leading laps. In Kansas, Denny Hamlin has been the most fearsome driver. He has four victories on the track and heads there again after winning in Dover last Sunday. Only Kyle Larson comes close to being a challenge for him.
Despite the numbers, Sunday presents an opportunity for a different team to get in on the spoils. In prime position to do so is 23XI Racing. The Denny Hamlin – Michael Jordan owned racing team has won three of the last four races on the track and displayed exemplary potential. Should the winds favor the team, Tyler Reddick or Bubba Wallace would be more than capable of cruising in their Toyotas to the flag.
