The 2026 edition of the NASCAR All-Star Race already had a huge change in scenery heading to Dover Motor Speedway for the first time in the race’s existence, and now it has a new format as well, NASCAR announced Feb. 25.
The first change comes with the lap count jumping from 250 last year to 350. The race will feature three segments, two 75-lap segments to start and a 200-lap segment to end.
Qualifying for the event will keep the same format as last year, featuring a lap up to speed, a mandatory pit stop on the second lap and then racing back to the checkered.
There will be no All-Star Open for drivers to race their way into the field. Instead, all drivers will take the green flag for the first two segments. After segment one, the field from first to 26th will be inverted for segment two. After segment two, the field will be fully set for the final segment. It includes the drivers locked into the field via a win in 2025 or 2026, being a previous All-Star Race winner or being a series champion.
After that, the drivers with the highest average in the two segments will fill the field until the field reaches 25 drivers. Then the 26th and final driver in the final segment will be the winner of a fan vote.
See the full rundown here.
The 2026 All-Star Race will be held on Sunday, May 17, at 1 p.m. ET. FOX Sports 1 will broadcast the event.
Wasn’t the open race one of the few interesting things about the entire affair?
I wonder how long it took for the NA$CAR brain trust to come up with this derivative of the NA$CAR Exhibition event? Or is it another travesty? We know it is a money grab which means it won’t be a weeknd off.
Nascar only cares about $$$$$$. The fans are the last thing they think about!!!
So it isn’t really an all-star race, just a non points race run 50 laps shorter than a normal Dover pts race. Sounds like the best thing about it is the start time.
Time to put this thing out to pasture once and for all and give these guys an extra weekend off.