Kansas
Good news, bad news for NASCAR Cup teams ahead of Kansas playoff race
The second round of the Cup playoffs begin. Two drivers switch rides beginning this weekend. And NASCAR is back at the track that provided the closest finish in series history earlier this year.
Much is happening at the 1.5-mile Kansas Speedway heading into Sunday’s race (3 p.m. ET on USA Network).
Here is a look at the good news and bad news for Cup teams going to Kansas.
23XI Racing — Good news: Bubba Wallace’s third-place finish at Bristol marked his sixth top-five finish of the season and 11th top 10 of the year. Both are career highs. … 23XI Racing has won three of the last five races at Kansas, getting a victory each from Kurt Busch, Tyler Reddick and Wallace. … Reddick has scored the most points among all drivers at races on 1.5-mile speedways this season. He has 154 points. Bad news: Reddick has scored 11 stage points in the playoffs. That ranks worst among the remaining 12 playoff drivers. … Reddick has scored 69 points in the playoffs. That also ranks worst among the remaining 12 playoff drivers.
Front Row Motorsports — Good news: Michael McDowell has finished 11th or better in each of the last two races this season. … McDowell has started in the top 10 in the last two races at Kansas. Bad news: Todd Gilliland has not started better than 25th in five career Cup starts at Kansas.
Hendrick Motorsports — Good news: Bristol winner Kyle Larson has a series-best eight finishes in the top three this season. … Larson won at Kansas in the most recent Cup race there. He beat Chris Buescher by .001 seconds in the closest finish in series history. … Larson is the only repeat winner in the last eight Cup races at Kansas. … Alex Bowman scored the most points in the first round of the playoffs. He had 120, including a series-best 41 stage points. … Chase Elliott finished third t Kansas in May. Bad news: William Byron has two top-10 finishes in the last eight races.
Three new drivers join this week’s top 10.
Joe Gibbs Racing — Good news: Denny Hamlin’s four Cup wins at Kansas are the most all-time. … Hamlin’s pit crew had the fastest four-tire pit stop at Bristol at 9.3 seconds, according to Racing Insights. … Christopher Bell has won the pole for the last two races at Kansas and three of the last five races there. Bad news: Hamlin has been the leader with 10 laps to go in the last two Kansas races but has not won either. He finished second in September 2023 and fifth in May. … Martin Truex Jr. has finished 20th or worse in the last eight races. … Ty Gibbs has finished no better than 15th in the last four races.
Martin Truex Jr., Brad Keselowski, Ty Gibbs and Harrison Burton were eliminated at Bristol.
JTG Daugherty Racing — Good news: Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has finished 14th or better in six of the last 13 races. Bad news: Stenhouse has failed to finish five of the last 11 races due to an accident.
Kaulig Racing — Good news: Ty Dillon is in the No. 16 car this weekend. It is his seventh start of the year and his 245th career Cup start. … Daniel Hemric has three top 20s in the last five races. Bad news: Hemric has started 30th or worse in 15 of 29 races this season.
Legacy Motor Club — Good news: Erik Jones finished third at Kansas last September. He was the only non-playoff driver to finish in the top nine in that race. … Jimmie Johnson is back in the No. 84 this weekend. This will be his seventh start of the year. Bad news: John Hunter Nemechek has not started better than 10th in a race this season.
Richard Childress Racing — Good news: Kyle Busch has two Cup wins at Kansas, along with four Xfinity wins and three Truck wins there. Bad news: Busch has finished 25th or worse in each of the past two races. He has finished 25th or worse 12 times this year. … Busch’s career-long winless streak has reached 50 races. … Austin Dillon has had six consecutive finishes of 15th or worse since his Richmond victory.
Rick Ware Racing — Good news: Corey LaJoie makes his debut with the team this weekend. … He will have Kaz Grala as a teammate this weekend. Bad news: The organization has not had a car qualify in the top 25 in eight of the last nine races.
NASCAR’s Elton Sawyer told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio: “We were disappointed as a company for our fans.”
RFK Racing — Good news: Brad Keselowski has finished second in two of the last three races on a 1.5-mile speedway. Bad news: The organization’s last win at Kansas was in October 2012 by Matt Kenseth. … Keselowski has no top 10s in the last four races. … RFK Racing drivers were passed for the win in the last two races on 1.5-mile tracks. … Chris Buescher was finished 15th or worse in four of the last five races at Kansas. The exception was in May when he placed second, losing by .001 seconds to Kyle Larson in the closet finish in series history.
Spire Motorsports — Good news: Justin Haley makes his debut with the team this weekend. … Two of the team’s cars qualified in the top 10 at Bristol, marking the first time the organization had accomplished that feat. Carson Hocevar started seventh. Corey LaJoie, in his final race for the team, started ninth. … The team has had at least one car finish in the top 20 in the last 15 races. Bad news: Zane Smith has six pit road speeding penalties this season.
Stewart-Haas Racing — Good news: Ryan Preece has had three top 20s in a row, which is tied for his longest streak of the season. … Chase Briscoe has three top 10s in the last four races. … Briscoe overcame a 21-point deficit to the cutline after Atlanta, the opening race in the first round, to advance. That’s tied for the largest margin overcome to make it to the second round without a win. … Josh Berry has started in the top 10 in seven of the last 13 races. … Noah Gragson has scored back-to-back top-15 finishes. Bad news: Berry has finished 20th or worse in 10 of the last 11 races.
A look at the winners and losers from the weekend at Bristol.
Team Penske — Good news: Joey Logano has won three playoff races at Kansas, the most among all drivers. … Austin Cindric has had two of his five top 10s this season in the playoffs. Bad news: Austin Cindric and Logano are tied with Daniel Suarez with 13 finishes of 21st or worse. That the is most among any of the remaining playoff drivers. … Ryan Blaney has failed to finish three of the last five races. … Blaney has one top-10 finish in the last seven Kansas races.
Trackhouse Racing — Good news: Ross Chastain has three top 10s in the last four races. Bad news: Daniel Suarez has two top 10s in 15 Cup starts at Kansas.
Wood Brothers Racing — Good news: Harrison Burton has four top-25 finishes in the last six races . Bad news: Burton was eliminated from the playoffs after Bristol. … He has finished 30th or worse in four of his five Cup starts at Kansas.
The Kansas Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at May 7, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Pick 3 numbers from May 7 drawing
Midday: 6-2-2
Evening: 0-5-9
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning 2 By 2 numbers from May 7 drawing
Red Balls: 07-15, White Balls: 02-16
Check 2 By 2 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from May 7 drawing
05-08-21-44-48, Bonus: 01
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
All Kansas Lottery retailers will redeem prizes up to $599. For prizes over $599, winners can submit winning tickets through the mail or in person at select Kansas Lottery offices.
By mail, send a winner claim form and your signed lottery ticket to:
Kansas Lottery Headquarters
128 N Kansas Avenue
Topeka, KS 66603-3638
(785) 296-5700
To submit in person, sign the back of your ticket, fill out a claim form, and deliver the form along with your signed lottery ticket to Kansas Lottery headquarters. 128 N Kansas Avenue, Topeka, KS 66603-3638, (785) 296-5700. Hours: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes of any amount.
Check previous winning numbers and payouts at Kansas Lottery.
When are the Kansas Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT Tuesday and Friday.
- Pick 3 Midday/Evening: 1:10 p.m. and 9:10 p.m. CT daily.
- 2 By 2: 9:30 p.m. CT daily.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
- Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Super Kansas Cash: 9:10 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Kansas editor. You can send feedback using this form.
Kansas
Kansas City, Kansas, becomes sister city to Concepción, Argentina, ahead of FIFA World Cup 2026
KSHB 41 reporter Fernanda Silva covers stories in the Northland, including Liberty. She also focuses on issues surrounding immigration. Share your story idea with Fernanda.
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Kansas City, Kansas, is now a sister city to Concepción, in the Tucumán province of Argentina.
The connection that carries deep personal meaning for members of the Kansas City area’s Argentinian community, with less than six weeks until Lionel Messi and their national team play at Kansas City Stadium (GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium).
Kansas City, Kansas, becomes sister city to Concepción, Argentina, ahead of World Cup
The official Sister Cities Agreement was signed Wednesday at Sporting Park, in a ceremony that also served as the kickoff of a broader cultural and economic initiative connecting Argentina and Kansas.
Federico Carmona has lived in the United States for more than two decades. He spent Wednesday afternoon cheering and smiling.
“This is my dream,” Carmona said.
For Carmona, the moment was personal — a merging of the two places he calls home.
KSHB/ Brian Luton
“This is a blessing,” Carmona said.
He continued, “Argentina is my heart. I was born in Argentina. I have so much passion for soccer. I used to play, my kids play. We never thought that Argentina was going to be in Kansas City. So that was a big, big surprise for us.”
Claudia Luna West, chair of the Sister Cities Association and a native of Concepción, Tucumán, was one of the driving forces behind the partnership.
“It means the world to me,” Luna West said.
KSHB/ Brian Luton
She described the pairing of the two cities as a natural collaboration — like the ingredients of a perfect recipe coming together.
“Everything collaborates to be this great thing,” Luna West said.
That recipe metaphor extended to food. The event featured the announcement of a partnership between Kansas BBQ Empanadas and Jack Stack BBQ — a culinary symbol of the two cultures meeting.
“Now, empanadas aren’t going to be just an ethnic food. They’re going to be a landmark of Kansas,” Luna West said.
Mayor/CEO of the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and KCK, Christal Watson, said the designation reflects the city’s diversity and its ability to connect with the world.
KSHB
“I think it’s important that we set a global stage on how diverse we are and how beautifully, wonderfully made we are with all the different cultures,” Watson said.
Watson said shared experiences — including food — are what bring communities together.
KSHB
“Food is a common link. Those are the things that get us engaged… those are the things that help us grow and be a better community overall,” Watson said. “We already have a flavor going on.”
Jake Reid, president and CEO of Sporting Kansas City, said the timing of the sister city announcement — with the FIFA World Cup 2026 approaching — felt right.
KSHB/ Brian Luton
“We’ve been planning this for so long. I think to have it on the doorstep now and be probably a month out is becoming very real and exciting,” Reid said. “They’re meant to be from… kind of everything we’ve got going on right now, for sure.”
For Carmona, the day was a long time coming.
“We can’t wait for all this to happen,” Carmona said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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MANHATTAN — Kansas State will have a new kick returner come fall after Bryce Noernberg departed the team, and his dad used some colorful language in a Facebook post to announce it.
A K-State spokesperson confirmed that Noernberg left the team after the spring season. He returned 20 kicks over the last two seasons for an average of 27.8 yards per return. He scored one touchdown and also coughed up the ball multiple times.
In a Facebook post, Noernberg’s father, Scott, wrote that it had been an amazing few years in Manhattan, but then “Division I college football does what it does.”
“New head coach Colin (sic) Klein brought in all new coaches and players… paid them accordingly and (Noernberg) found himself at the bottom of the depth chart,” Scott Noernberg wrote. “Not wanting to start over again as a true walk-on freshman, he basically told them to kiss his ass!!
“Well done Bryce! I’m so proud that you stood up to the system! D1 athletics is in a very sad state, and it’s times like this that make you grow as a man!”
Also a wide receiver, Noernberg saw one offensive snap over his two seasons with the program. He was unlikely to find an offensive role for the Wildcats this year, considering the return of Jaron Tibbs and the additions of Josh Manning, Izaiah Williams, and Derrick Salley Jr. Other returning players, like Adonis Moise and Larry Porter IV, were also considered ahead of him.
His departure does leave a void at kick returner, which Noernberg wasn’t guaranteed to keep heading into the year.
Wyatt D. Wheeler covers Kansas State athletics for the USA TODAY Network and Topeka Capital-Journal. You can follow him on X at @WyattWheeler_, contact him at 417-371-6987 or email him at wwheeler@usatodayco.com
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