NASCAR has announced full details of the new format for the 2026 All-Star Race at Dover Motor Speedway.
The sport will rock up to Delaware’s ‘Monster Mile’ on May 17 (1pm ET, FS1) as the great and good of the grid do battle in this iconic annual event.
And we have new wrinkles to throw into the mix this year after NASCAR made the big format reveal late Wednesday.
NASCAR STANDINGS: 23XI Racing dominate with reigning champion out of the Chase
All-Star Race format: Qualifying
The first thing to note for 2026 is that the 350-lap main event will be broken into in-race segments and an enhanced qualifying session featuring the Pit Crew Challenge.
In addition to a change of venue, the 2026 All-Star Race format itself will have a different flavor, starting with a bigger emphasis on qualifying (which takes place May 16.
Competitors will take the green flag and run one full lap at speed. The second lap will feature the Mechanix Wear Pit Crew Challenge, where each pit crew will perform a single four-tire stop with no gas.
Competitors will then race back to the start/finish line, with qualifying encompassing the total time from green flag to checkered flag. The pit crew with the fastest pit stop and no penalties will win the Pit Crew Challenge, with the results determining pit selection order for the All-Star Race.
The Race: Segment by segment rules
In place of an All-Star Open, qualifying results will instead determine the full field for Segment 1, a 75-lap sprint as part of the 350-lap event. Following the conclusion of Segment 1, a second 75-lap dash will occur; the lineup for Segment 2 will be an inversion of Segment 1’s top 26, with the remaining drivers lined up by finish.
The final 200-lap segment of the 2026 All-Star Race will consist of 26 drivers. The field for the final segment will include 2025 and 2026 Cup Series race winners, former Cup Series champions who compete full-time, a Fan Vote winner and remaining drivers based on the lowest combined finishing positions among Segments 1 and 2.
Christopher Bell won the 2025 All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro. The 2025 and 2026 Cup Series winners so far include: Bell, Josh Berry, Ryan Blaney, Chase Briscoe, Kyle Busch, William Byron, Ross Chastain, Austin Cindric, Austin Dillon, Chase Elliott, Shane van Gisbergen, Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, Tyler Reddick and Bubba Wallace.
