2026 NASCAR All-Star race format further delegitimizes what was once a crown jewel event

NASCAR Cup Series drivers round the track at EchoPark Speedway. Mady Mertens-Imagn Images

2026 NASCAR All-Star race format further delegitimizes what was once a crown jewel event

By Samuel Stubbs | Last updated Feb 25, 2026 3:38 PM ET

NASCAR's All-Star race has only become less exclusive over the years, and it became even less so on Wednesday.

NASCAR announced the 2026 format for the May 17 edition of the All-Star Race at Dover Motor Speedway on Wednesday. The 350-lap race at the one-mile track will begin with all Cup Series entries that show up to Dover — which will be at least 36 but could stretch up to 40 — starting the race.

After the first two 75-lap segments, 26 drivers will compete in the final 200 laps for the $1 million prize.

Only 12 drivers competed in the first iteration of the NASCAR All-Star Race in 1985.

NASCAR's All Star Event becoming less glamorous

The change will give fans at the track the opportunity to see more drivers, but in the grand scheme of what an All-Star event is supposed to be, the new format misses the mark.

NASCAR All-Star format:
-350 laps; 75-75-200
-No "open" race; all cars start
-Invert top-26 after first segment
-Driver's combined finish first two segments sets order for final segment of 26 drivers: 2025-26 race winners, past champs, best combined segment finishers, fan vote pic.twitter.com/KUbvhTSzUp
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) February 25, 2026

Previously, drivers not already locked into the All-Star race by virtue of being a past ASR winner, Cup Series champion or Cup Series race winner in the previous or ongoing season could race their way in through the All-Star Open. But there will be no All-Star Open at Dover in 2026.

Instead, the entire Cup Series field will be able to race in nearly half of the All-Star Race, with two-thirds of it competing for the entirety of the event.

NASCAR's All-Star Race, like the NASCAR Clash and other major sports' All-Star events, has become watered down with time. Wednesday's format change only exacerbates the issue.

Such an inflated All-Star field only lessens the prestige of such a race, which was meant to be a race between the best drivers NASCAR had to offer. In 2026, the first half of it will feel just like any of the 36 points races on the schedule.

And if an All-Star event makes no distinction between All-Stars and those who aren't, can it really be considered an All-Star event?

In NASCAR's case, the answer seems to be no.

Samuel Stubbs

Hailing from the same neck of the woods as NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, Samuel has been covering NASCAR for Yardbarker since February 2024. He has been a member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) since October of 2024. When he’s not writing about racing, Samuel covers Arkansas Razorback basketball for Yardbarker

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