Dover's NASCAR All-Star race has wild format, and a potential pothole
· Yahoo Sports
DOVER − When Dover Motor Speedway hosts the NASCAR Cup Series All-Star race on May 17, it will mark something entirely new since the sport's top series began racing at the Monster Mile in 1969, a span of 107 races.
This time, Dover will host a race for the first time without points at stake. It will also present a new format in which the race is divided into three segments over 350 laps, with the final 200 laps consisting of only 26 drivers. The rest of the field will be eliminated.
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Those 26 drivers, determined by a number of factors explained below, will compete for $1 million in prize money.
For Dover Motor Speedway president and general manager Mike Tatoian, the All-Star race brings something brand new to Dover. The track will also host the Ecosave 200 in the Craftsman Truck Series on May 15, and the BetRivers 200 in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series on May 16.
"The reason why we like it is because we've never had it before," Tatoian said. "Any time you get a new product, I think it's good for the fans ... Having the anomaly of it here for the first time in the northeast, we've created a lot of excitement around it."
That includes the off-track entertainment as well as the racing taking place inside the track. As usual, Dover Motor Speedway will have an assortment of entertainment for fans outside the track. Fans do not need a race ticket to attend those events.
But there is potentially one drawback to not hosting a points race: There's no guarantee that a points race will return, although Tatoian said he is confident that it will.
After all, North Wilkesboro Speedway, in North Carolina, hosted the All-Star race for the previous three years. It got a points race back this year, the track's first since 1996.
"We'll get a points race back," Tatoian said. "Honestly, I just don't know when that will be ... (New NASCAR chief operating officer) Ben Kennedy is really aggressive with scheduling, which I think has been good for the sport, exploring areas, doing things that we haven't done in the past.
"But as it relates to what happens in 2027 and 2028 and beyond, I really don't know what is in store. I know we'll have a race. I don't know if it'll be a points race or an All-Star race."
NASCAR appointed a new CEO in Steve O'Donnell and COO in Kennedy. They took over on April 25. It marks the first time NASCAR's CEO comes from outside the founding France family in the sport's 78-year history.
NASCAR has already shown an inclination to exploring new venues and new courses. This season, NASCAR is holding a street-course event at San Diego’s Coronado Naval Base. From 2022-24, NASCAR held exhibition races inside the Los Angeles Coliseum, where Southern Cal plays its home games in football.
Dover, however, is unique in its own right, most notably its high-banking, concrete oval.
"Dover is one of those tracks that when you strap in … you know you gotta go hard on that very first lap," NASCAR driver Brad Keselowski said. "You gotta get in the car, and you gotta commit to a long-ass (day) at a track that’s fairly unforgiving, really fast, and it’s a big challenge.
"It’s one of the most mentally-challenging things that you have to do as a race-car driver. I respect that so much about this track. I actually enjoy it. It feels a little masochistic to enjoy that. I know I’m going to have to suck it up. But the reward for that, after that first few laps, is, ‘Man, that was pretty bad-ass.’"
What is the All-Star format?
The All-Star format could actually make the racing at Dover even more "bad-ass" than usual.
The first All-Star race was held in 1985 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, where it remained for all but one year until 2019. It has moved around since then, going from Bristol, Tennessee in 2020 to Texas Motor Speedway in 2021-22, to North Wilkesboro the last three seasons and now to Dover.
The formats have changed over the years. This year, the race is divided into three segments. The first two are 75 laps. The order for the first segment is determined by qualifying on May 16. The order for the second segment is determined by an inversion of the top 26 finishers.
So the first-place finisher will start the second segment from the 26th spot, the second place finisher will start from the 25th spot, and so on. The remaining drivers will be lined up by finish in the first segment. All of that is done to encourage passing over the second segment.
That sets up the final 200-lap segment, which will consist of only 26 drivers. The field for that will include Cup Series winners from both 2025 and 2026, former Cup Series champions who compete full time and a fan vote winner.
The remaining drivers will be included based on the lowest combined finishing positions among the first two segments.
"I like the All-Star race concept," Keselowski said. "I like the concept of a race without points. I like the concept of not everybody being in the race."
What is the prize money for the NASCAR All-Star race?
The winner after all of that gets $1 million. Interestingly, the prize money has remained the same since 2003.
While no one will ever turn down $1 million, a few drivers noted that inflation over the years has diminished the value of that original $1 million from 2003.
"I would like to see the prize money go up, to match the inflation for the past two years," Keselowski said, before adding with a laugh: "I know the TV money (to NASCAR) has."
Then he added diplomatically: "I will say to the credit of the sport that the team owners have certainly elevated the prize money on the other races."
Kyle Larson had similar sentiments. He has won the All-Star race three times, in 2019, 2021 and 2023, tied with Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Sr. Only Jimmie Johnson, with four victories, has won more All-Star races.
When Larson was asked if he would like to see the prize money increase, he replied: "Always. We’re all selfish. We would love for every race to pay more. But a million dollars is still more than any other race pays to win. So you can appreciate that."
And Dover will appreciate the experience of having the top drivers competing in a unique format trying to tame a Monster Mile that has always presented its share of challenges. For now.
"We've done something for 107 straight times, which is host a great points race," Tatoian said. "That's important to us. We'd like to get a points race back."
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This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Dover's NASCAR All-Star race has new format, new questions for future