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Saturday night marks the 24th edition of the annual NASCAR All-Star Race at Lowe's Motor Speedway.
It only seems like the format has been changed every year.
Since the idea was born in 1985, NASCAR and its sponsors have tinkered with the event in a nonstop manner in hopes of trying to find the perfect mix between good racing and competition.
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| Greg Biffle, who finished 15th last May, says the All-Star race is 'all about the money.' (Getty Images) |
This year is no different.
It will actually be the 15th time the format has been modified since that first race 23 years ago, with the 2008 event comprised of four 25-lap segments, including a couple of breaks and pit stops thrown into the mix.
But the one thing that has remained constant is the pile of money at the end of the night for the driver who survives what is usually one of the more wild races of the season.
"I have no idea what this year's format is," Kyle Busch said. "I don't know if it changed from last year. It's always different. Something always changes."
Most drivers don't care what the format ultimately winds up being every year, just as long as there is a chance to race and of course take home that jackpot, which again this year will be well over $1 million.
"I don't care if they change the format," said Jeff Burton. "However, I think the format should produce good racing. When I say good racing, I think it needs to be a reasonable-length race so the fans and drivers can see some exciting racing. I think that a driver that has one bad lap should have a chance to come back and still win. I think shorter races create more excitement because the longer the runs, the more the cars get spread out. At the same time, you have to be careful and not make the segments too short."
The winners-only field of 21 will be joined by two drivers who transfer from the night's preliminary Sprint Showdown qualifying race as well as one lucky name voted in by fans. That 24-car lineup will then battle it out in the four-segment event that is somewhat a throwback to the Saturday night weekly racing where most drivers started their racing lives.
"This is a Saturday night race, what we've all done our whole career, lots of money on the line," said Greg Biffle. "So you'll take a little more risk. You'll drive it on the edge. Look at the length of the race. It's not that 500-mile race. It's go from the green to checkered."
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The night also serves as a bit of a break for drivers and teams, who don't have to worry about the championship chase or points but rather simply winning.
"The All-Star race is all about the money; there are no points on the line," Biffle said. "So, we'll take a little more risk for reward, because we know that there's not a lot on the line. Let's face it, we have 26 opportunities to make the Chase, and we have to take every one of those very seriously. This doesn't count as that."
Jeff Gordon is a three-time winner of the event and is tied with the late Dale Earnhardt on top of the all-time victory list. The four-time series champion considers this an important event if only because it was created with the fans in mind.
"You just go out there and have fun and race hard," Gordon said. "You hope it puts on a great race for the fans because that is really what it is all about, it's sort of giving back to the fans for their support and everything that they do for us."
Putting on a show for the fans is important, but what about that cool million bucks waiting at the finish line?
"I think that it could pay $1 and everybody would still go all out. We're that fierce of competitors when we go out there on the racetrack," Gordon said. "I think the fact that there's money on the line might bring a little more excitement to it. It sort of dangles that carrot out in front of you, and really makes you go after it that much harder."
