NASCAR Cup Series

“I’ve excited about the Kentucky race for a few reasons. I love night races and we’ve got ACE Bandages on the car and the black car will look really good under the lights Saturday night. Kentucky has been a tough track for us, but I have a lot of success there in Truck and Nationwide. We’re hoping for a good run Saturday night.”

Ambrose has three previous starts at Kentucky with RPM. The track has proved to be one his best ovals on qualifying day with an average start inside the Top-10. His best start is fifth just last season. He has completed every lap he's ever raced at Kentucky and has a pair of Top-15 finishes. Ambrose's best finish at Kentucky is 13th.

Allgaier completed his first NSCS race at Sonoma Raceway He had never raced on the 1.99-mile road course until last Saturday when he participated in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race to gain experience for the NSCS race. Allgaier finished that race in the 14th position after late-race contact.

1. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson, winner of three of the last four races, posted a seventh at Sonoma, his 11th top 10 of the year. He is second in the points standings, 20 behind Jeff Gordon.

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series visits the 1.5-mile track situated in Sparta, Ky., this weekend. And while Bowyer won’t have time to hunt deer or turkey, he and the No. 15 5-hour ENERGY Toyota crew will be hunting something else- victory lane.

Kentucky Speedway is the site of Dillon's career-first win in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. In fact, the 2013 Nationwide Series Champion earned back-to-back Nationwide Series wins at the 1.5-mile track in 2012, sweeping both races and earning the pole award for both the June and September events.

What makes Kentucky Speedway unique compared to other 1.5-mile tracks? “It’s the newest, oldest track we go to. Kentucky Speedway is very rough. The corners are longer so they’re not as sharp, but the roughness of the racing surface is really what makes it unique in my mind. There is still a lot of grip, but the track has become rough over the years.”

Gilliland has three Sprint Cup career starts at Kentucky Speedway. He shocked the racing world with his first Nationwide Series win at the 1.5-mile oval in 2006 in a part-time, unsponsored car. Love's Travel Stops returns as primary sponsor of the No. 38 Ford at Kentucky.

"We've only been running Cup races at Kentucky for the past three years or so. So, by no means is it the type of place that anybody's got totally figured out, especially as the cars and the set-ups change from year to year. It's also a race where we practice during the day and race at night, so that's another factor that can be a challenge as we prepare for Saturday's race."

It was a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon. Interesting race, a few surprises, great topography and scenery, and top notch announcing. What was not to like?