PREVIEW: Entry List Storylines for Kansas
by Brock Beard / LASTCAR.info Editor-in-Chief
IMAGE: Richard Childress Racing
Saturday, April 18, 2026 (Green Flag 7:09 P.M. ET, CW)
O’REILLY Race 10 of 33
Kansas Lottery 300 at Kansas
2025 Last-Place Finisher (September): Nick Leitz
ENTRY LIST
There are 37 drivers entered for 38 starting spots in Saturday’s race at Kansas, marking the first short field in an O’Reilly race since last August at Portland.
DRIVER CHANGE: #0-SS-Green Light Racing
Cole Custer will run the #0 for the first time since his 18th-place showing in Las Vegas for what will likely be another joint effort with his Cup team, Haas Factory Team. It was also announced just this week that Saturday will be the next of four races he’ll run with this team, followed next month in Charlotte, then Pocono and Chicagoland. This week, Custer takes the place of Bristol last-place finisher Garrett Smithley, whose loss of gear oil sent him behind the wall.
DRIVER SWAP: #1-JR Motorsports
MISSING: #9-JR Motorsports
Carson Kvapil returns to his familiar #1 in place of Bristol race winner Connor Zilisch, who will focus exclusively on the Cup race this week. JRM has elected not to enter the part-time #9 with which Kvapil took 5th under the lights at Bristol.
DRIVER CHANGE: #5-Hettinger Racing
Luke Baldwin looks for better results than his O’Reilly Series debut with this Hettinger team in Martinsville, where early brake trouble sent him hard into the outside wall. He takes the place of J.J. Yeley in what is still the lone Ford on the entry list, one week after Yeley took home 26th in Bristol.
TEAM UPDATE: #30-Barrett-Cope Racing
TEAM UPDATE: #74-Mike Harmon Racing
On Monday, David PeQueen reported that Mike Harmon’s team had acquired the Owner Points to the #30 team last seen at Martinsville, and is now listed as “274” in place of “174” on the Owner Points ranking. The acquisition has also increased the #74 team’s points margin over the Joey Gase Motorsports #35 from 15 to 42 points. While shown as TBA at first publication of the entry list, Dawson Cram returns in place of Gray Gaulding, who is reported to return next week in Talladega. The return date for the #30 team is as yet unknown.
TEAM UPDATE: #35-Joey Gase Motorsports with Scott Osteen
There was also a “TBA” in the driver’s column for the #35 entry at the Gase team, but Blake Lothian will again drive following his 34th-place showing in Bristol.
DRIVER CHANGE: #42-Young’s Motorsports
After back pain caused Logan Bearden to get out of the car mid-race at Bristol, bringing on board Brad Perez to finish the race, Nick Leitz is entered – much to his surprise on social media on Monday. Leitz, who finished last in this race last year, will make his second series start, his first since a solid 18th-place showing with this team in Atlanta.
DRIVER CHANGE: #88-JR Motorsports
While the number of Cup invaders is on the decline this week, the #88 will stay the course, swapping out Bristol runner-up Kyle Larson for his teammate William Byron. This keeps Rajah Caruth in the #32 at the Jordan Anderson Racing team this week, again sponsored by HendrickCars.com. Byron’s 45th series start will be his second of the season, his first since a 13th-place showing in Phoenix.
CUP INVADERS: #0-Cole Custer, #88-William Byron
Sunday, April 19, 2026 (Green Flag 2:19 P.M. ET, FOX)
CUP Race 9 of 36
AdventHealth 400 at Kansas
2025 Last-Place Finisher: A.J. Allmendinger
ENTRY LIST
There are 37 drivers entered for 40 spots, marking the eighth short field in these first nine races of the season.
MISSING: #66-Garage 66
Chad Finchum is not entered after a track bar issue sent him behind the wall for several laps, ultimately putting him out of the race in the middle stages for a 36th-place finish. To this point, Carl Long’s Garage 66 effort has made three of the season’s first eight races, each with a different driver. Casey Mears made the Daytona 500, and Timmy Hill ran in Darlington.
RETURNING: #67-23XI Racing
Corey Heim returns during the first of two straight off-weekends for the series, where even after a crash in Bristol on top of a part-time schedule, he remains one of the four drivers within just four points of leader Chandler Smith. Sunday will mark Heim’s second Cup start of the year, his first since his own start in the Daytona 500, where he finished a lap down in 28th.
Friday, May 1, 2026
TRUCKS Race 7 of 25
SpeedyCash.com 250 at Texas
2025 Last-Place Finisher: Kaden Honeycutt
The Truck Series returns in two weeks at Texas.
TODAY IN LASTCAR HISTORY (April 17, 2009): Dave Blaney picked up the 4th last-place finish of his NASCAR Nationwide Series career in the Bashas’ Supermarkets 200 at Phoenix when his #90 MSRP Motorsports Chevrolet fell out after 4 laps with brake issues. Terry Cook, Blaney’s teammate in the #91, dropped out three laps later in 42nd place.
