Everything You Need to Know About NASCAR's All Star Race

You could call it the Y’all Star Race if you felt so inclined.

With NASCAR and Speedway Motorsports adding Circuit of the Americas to the Cup Series schedule this season at the expense of a regular season race at Texas Motor Speedway, the All-Star Race was moved to the Great American Speedway.

This is only the third time that the annual exhibition race hasn’t taken place at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The second edition of ‘The Winston’ took place at Atlanta Motor Speedway in 1986 one year after it debuted at Charlotte.

The COVID-19 pandemic forced it to Bristol Motor Speedway last year and now it moves to Texas Motor Speedway. With that said, the new venue isn’t the only thing novel about the non-points race this year.

Here’s a handy guide.

HOW IS THIS GOING TO WORK?

There’s no denying it, the All-Star Race format is a little convoluted and designed to be wild, wacky and zany.

It’s best described as placing diecasts in a blender, turning it on, and calling it a race. It’s designed to place the cars in a pack and forcing them to bounce off each other like bumper cars.

Here’s a simplified explanation.

• The race will be 100 laps divided across six segments.

• Segments 1 through 4 will be 15 laps each. Segment 5 will be 30 laps and Round 6 finishes with a 10-lap shootout.

• Only green-flag laps will count.

• There is a mandatory, four-tire pit stop during the fifth segment.

So, here’s where the race starts to feel like a blender as it features mid-race inverts, random draws and a little bit of arithmetic at the end. For the uninitiated, an invert takes a random number and flips the field from that point.

In other words, an 8-car invert would take the eighth-place finisher and restart him first with first place being flipped to first. Second would be seventh and seventh would be second and so-forth. An entire field invert means last place would start first, next to last would start second and first place would start first and so forth.

• The Segment 1 starting lineup was determined by a random draw.

• For Segment 2, the field will be determined by a field inversion -- starting anywhere between eighth and 12th.

• For Segment 3, the entire field will be inverted.

• For Segment 4, the field will be inverted with a random draw that again starts anywhere between eighth and 12th.

• The Segment 5 starting lineup will be determined based on drivers’ cumulative finishes through the first four segments. The driver with the best cumulative finish will start first, while the driver with the worst cumulative finish will start last. If there is a need for a tiebreaker, it will be determined in this order: most All-Star Race wins, most career Cup Series race wins and then current driver standings.

• For Segment 6, the starting order will be set based on drivers’ finishing positions in Segment 5.

WHAT ABOUT THE RULES PACKAGE?

The current intermediate rules formula uses a tapered spacer to restrict horsepower to 550, while also utilizing a high downforce body package. In other words, big spoilers and small horsepower. But for the All-Star Race, NASCAR has ordered an even greater reduction in horsepower.

The engines will use a tapered spacer reduced from 59/64th of an inch to 57/64th with a target range of 500-510 horsepower. This will be similar to the 2018 All-Star Race at Charlotte which feature a giant pack of cars, a lot of crashing but an inability to pass the leader due to the clean air on his nose.

NASCAR hopes the inverts and random draws will make for a more compelling solution.

WHEN IS THE ALL-STAR RACE?

Date: Sunday, June 13
Time: 8 p.m. ET, but the All-Star Open is at 6 p.m.
Channel: FS1
Track: Texas Motor Speedway

WHAT IS THE STARTING LINEUP?

Drivers are eligible for the All Star Race if they won a points race in 2020 or 2021, won a previous All-Star Race and are current full-time drivers or won a NASCAR Cup Series championship and are current full-time drivers.

A random draw has determined the starting lineup for the 100 lap main event.

1. Kyle Larson

2. Kyle Busch

3. Christopher Bell

4. Cole Custer

5. Austin Dillon

6. Chase Elliott

7. Joey Logano

8. William Byron

9. Brad Keselowski

10. Martin Truex Jr.

11. Michael McDowell

12. Kevin Harvick

13. Kurt Busch

14. Ryan Newman

15. Alex Bowman

16. Denny Hamlin

17. Ryan Blaney

18. Winner Open Round 1

19. Winner Open Round 2

20. Winner Open Round Final Round

21. Fan Vote

WHAT IS THE ALL-STAR OPEN?

Okay, so for three of the remaining four starting positions, the All-Star Open is a race before the race to give everyone else not guaranteed a starting position their chance to make the main event.

The All-Star Open will be split into three segments -- 20 laps, 20 laps and 10 laps. The winners of each of those three segments will advance to the All-Star Race. The starting lineup was determined by team owner points.

1. Tyler Reddick

2. Chris Buescher

3. Matt DiBenedetto

4. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

5. Ross Chastain

6. Bubba Wallace

7. Daniel Suarez

8. Erik Jones

9. Chase Briscoe

10. Aric Almirola

11. Corey LaJoie

12. Anthony Alfredo

13. Quin Houff

14. James Davison

15. Josh Bilicki

16. Austin Cindric

17. Cody Ware

18. BJ McLeod

19. Justin Haley

20. Garrett Smithley

21. Timmy Hill

22. David Starr

WHAT IS THE FAN VOTE?

Fans have been voting for weeks to determine the final entrant into the 100 lap All Star Race main event.

That final starting spot will go to the driver with the most votes who otherwise hasn’t already qualified for the race after the Open has been completed. The results of the fan vote will bot be made public until after the All Star Open concludes.

Kasey Kahne won the 2008 All Star Race from last place after winning the fan vote so anything is possible.

• Bubba Wallace

• Daniel Suárez

• Matt DiBenedetto

• Erik Jones

• Ross Chastain

• Chase Briscoe

• Tyler Reddick

• Ricky Stenhouse Jr.