Kansas Speedway opens NASCAR playoff weekend with ARCA, Trucks and Cup
NXTbets Pro | Published On: September 25, 2026
Kansas Speedway weekend
Kansas Speedway opens NASCAR’s fall weekend with a full slate from Friday through Sunday, and the track draws the sport’s top three series for three straight days of racing. The ARCA Menards Series, Craftsman Truck Series and Cup Series all hit the oval, giving fans a packed schedule that starts with practice and qualifying and builds toward three feature races. The weekend keeps the focus squarely on the racing action at Kansas, with the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series left off the card. That makes the event a clean, three-series showcase, with each division getting its own place in the spotlight and its own stakes attached to the trip to Kansas. The ARCA Menards Series closes its season at the track, the Truck Series brings a Saturday race, and the Cup Series race adds playoff weight to Sunday’s main event. This weekend carries the kind of tight, layered schedule that tests teams across all three national tours. Every series gets track time, and the timing of each session matters because qualifying and race preparation come fast once the cars roll into the weekend.
ARCA Menards finale
The weekend begins Friday with the ARCA Menards Series, which starts with practice at 3 p.m. ET and qualifying at 4 p.m. ET before the season finale, the Menards 150, at 8 p.m. on FS1. That race closes the ARCA year and gives the series its own prime slot to launch the Kansas schedule. The Friday program sets the tone for the rest of the weekend, with the ARCA field getting first crack at the track before the trucks and Cup cars take their turns. The Menards 150 gives the series one last chance to settle its season at Kansas, and the night race on FS1 puts the finale in a clear spot on the schedule. After the ARCA action ends, the focus shifts quickly to the Craftsman Truck Series, which comes back Saturday with practice at 5 p.m. ET and qualifying at 6:05 p.m. ET on FS2. That setup gives the trucks a tight turnaround before their race day, and it keeps the weekend moving without much down time. The ARCA finale and the Truck Series buildup create a strong opening act for Kansas, with both divisions using Friday and Saturday to set the stage for the heavier pressure that comes with Sunday’s Cup race.
Cup Series playoff race
The Cup Series owns the marquee event at Kansas, and Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 lands as the fourth race in the 10-race playoffs. That playoff placement gives the race an immediate edge, because every lap counts and every finish matters as the field works through the postseason. Cup practice starts Saturday at 10 a.m. ET, and qualifying follows at 11:10 a.m. ET, giving teams one day to work through their setups before the green flag drops. USA Network will carry Sunday’s 267-lap race after a 2:30 p.m. pre-race show, and the field is scheduled to go green at 3:10 p.m. Sunday. The race also has live radio coverage on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, adding another layer of access for fans following the playoff round. Kansas sits deep enough into the postseason that the Hollywood Casino 400 carries more than regular-season weight. It is part of the stretch where teams keep narrowing the margin for error, and the combination of practice, qualifying, pre-race coverage and the race itself turns Sunday into the centerpiece of the entire weekend. The Cup Series gets the largest stage, the clearest national spotlight and the most consequential race of the three, all at the same track where the weekend opens Friday and builds through Saturday night into Sunday afternoon.
