NASCAR: Driver change confirmed for first Kansas race

Derek Kraus is one of five drivers who have driven the No. 16 Chevrolet for Kaulig Racing this year, and like the other four, he has driven it in multiple races so far during the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season.

Kraus qualified the car for then-full-time driver A.J. Allmendinger at Richmond Raceway last August because Allmendinger was at Road America running the Xfinity Series race, but he did not make his official Cup Series debut until this past March at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Kraus returned for the following weekend's race at Phoenix Raceway, and to this day, his back-to-back starts, which resulted in 28th and 35th place finishes, mark the only instance in which the team have used the same driver from one week to the next this year.

All five drivers, including, Kraus, Allmendinger, Josh Williams, Shane van Gisbergen, and Ty Dillon, drove the No. 16 Chevrolet in two of the season's first 10 races.

Allmendinger, who also drove the non-charter No. 13 Chevrolet in its one appearance so far this season at Circuit of the Americas while van Gisbergen drove the No. 16 Chevrolet, made a third appearance this past Sunday at Dover Motor Speedway.

Derek Kraus set for NASCAR Cup Series return

Now Kraus is set to return for the third of his six scheduled starts, doing so at Kansas Speedway for this coming Sunday afternoon's AdventHealth 400, the first of two races at the four-turn, 1.5-mile (2.414-kilometer) Kansas City, Kansas oval on this year's schedule.

Kraus is once again set to drive the car in back-to-back races, as he is slated to return for the following Sunday afternoon's race at Darlington Raceway as well. Beyond that, he is set to compete at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway on Sunday, June 2 and Phoenix to conclude the season on Sunday, November 10.

A confirmed driver of the No. 16 Chevrolet is still needed for 12 of the 25 remaining races on this year's schedule, with the first of those races being the one at Sonoma Raceway on Sunday, June 9. As of now, van Gisbergen is set to make six more starts while Dillon is set to make three.

Like van Gisbergen, Allmendinger and Williams both compete full-time for Matt Kaulig's team in the Xfinity Series. It is expected that their Cup Series schedules will continue to expand.

Kansas Speedway is scheduled to host the AdventHealth 400 this Sunday, May 5, and live coverage is set to be provided by Fox Sports 1 beginning at 3:00 p.m. ET. Start a free trial of FuboTV now and don't miss it!