KANSAS CITY, Kan. — So many drivers studied NASCAR's new championship Chase format and singled out the second round as the one they feared the most. The difficult three-race stretch of Kansas, Charlotte and Talladega will knock four drivers from the field, and none wanted their championship hopes to be dependent on a good day at Talladega. It meant they had to be solid in the opener of the second round at Kansas Speedway, a notorious track for whittling the field of championship contenders.