Live updates: Christopher Bell starting NASCAR Cup Series race at Kansas from pole

Charlotte Observer NASCAR reporter Shane Connuck will be passing along live updates throughout Sunday’s Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway in the section below. Refresh this page for the latest news. Full results will be posted at the conclusion of the race. All times are Eastern.

2:25 p.m.: Today’s scheduled pre-race events: Driver introductions begin at 2:30 p.m. The invocation will be given at 2:54 p.m, and the national anthem will be performed at 2:55 p.m. Richard Petty will give command to fire the engines at 3:02 p.m., followed by green flag at 3:13 p.m.

2:15 p.m.: The NASCAR Cup Series cars do not have rain tires and the wet-weather package today in Kansas. A delay is very possible, but the race is expected to be run today regardless.

2 p.m.: Happy Race Day! The NASCAR Cup Series is back at Kansas Speedway, where green flag is scheduled for 3:13 p.m. There’s some light rain south of the track, and teams are covering their cars, but rain is expected to be completely out of the area by mid-afternoon.

It’s the third race on a 1.5-mile track this season. 23XI Racing drivers have won three of the past four races at this specific intermediate speedway in Kansas (Kurt Busch and Bubba Wallace in 2022, and Tyler Reddick in the last playoffs).

The exception? Their boss won there last spring.

Christopher Bell wins NASCAR-best 12th pole of Next Gen era

No driver has won more poles since the introduction of the Next Gen car than Christopher Bell.

All 12 of Bell’s career pole positions have come following the start of the 2022 season. He outpaced Ross Chastain and Noah Gragson with a 29.491-second lap during Saturday’s qualifying session and will start from the pole for the first time this year.

Who are the favorites in the AdventHealth 400?

Considering the aforementioned success that the 23XI Racing drivers have had at Kansas — not to mention Hamlin’s three wins there of his own — and how well those cars have run on 1.5-mile tracks this season, Hamlin and Larson are heavy favorites this week.

Kyle Larson remains the betting favorite — at +265 odds on DraftKings Sportsbook, and +250 odds on FanDuel Sportsbook — followed by Denny Hamlin, Tyler Reddick, Christopher Bell, Ty Gibbs and Martin Truex Jr.

Larson, who dominated this season’s first race on an intermediate speedway, is a recent winner at Kansas, as well. Each of Hamlin’s last five finishes at Kansas have been in the Top Five, and his drivers have won the last three races that he didn’t.

The Observer’s Shane Connuck is going with Ty Gibbs to get his first win in a Cup car. The No. 54 Toyota Camry has been fast this year, racking up six Top 10 finishes (three Top Fives) in the 11 races. Like many of his Toyota teammates, the grandson of Joe Gibbs has been strong on intermediate tracks. Gibbs, last year’s Rookie of the Year, came in 14th in the only race he’s finished at Kansas in his young career. He’s due for his first checkered flag, and today’s race track is a good place for it to happen.

How to watch and stream the NASCAR race at Kansas

Race: AdventHealth 400

Place: Kansas Speedway (Kansas City, Kansas)

Date: Sunday, May 5

Time: 3 p.m. ET (Green flag at 3:13 p.m.)

Purse: $7,894,315

TV: FS1, 3 p.m. ET

Streaming: FOX Sports

Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Distance: 400.5 miles (267 laps)

Stages: Stage 1 ends on Lap 80; Stage 2 ends on Lap 165; and the Final Stage ends on Lap 267.

Starting lineup for the AdventHealth 400