It’s Time For Nascar To Re-imagine Its All-Star Race

In 2017 one of the most iconic shows in America ended its 146-year run as the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, “The Greatest Show on Earth” held its final performance. The end came after declining ticket sales, and growing controversy over its use of animals.

At the time it seemed the right thing to do. Despite generations of childhood memories of popcorn, clowns, and elephants, the show had become stale. Children grew board with the circus and parents found other things to spend their money on.

This week however it was announced there will be a return of the “Greatest Show on Earth” In 2023. The company said the show won’t feature animals and instead will be all new, and ‘re-imagined.’

It’s somewhat timely, and perhaps ironic, that the announcement comes in the same week NASC SC A AR R will stage its annual All-Star Race at Texas Motor Speedway.

Poignant perhaps since many NASCAR fans, and even some in the industry, seem to be leaning towards the opinion that the once iconic All-Star Race has itself grown a bit stale.

The exhibition race for NASCAR’s Cup series features no points and offers a $1 million prize to the eventual winner. The race has been held since 1985 and known as the Winston (1985-2003), the Nextel All Star Challenge (2004-2007), the Sprint All-Star Race (2008 2016), the Monster Energy All Star Race (2017- 2019), and currently simply as the NASCAR All-Star Race.

Except for 1986 when it was held at Atlanta Motor Speedway, the event was at Charlotte Motor Speedway normally on the weekend prior to that track’s 600 miler. In 2020 after the sport’s shutdown due to Covid, out of necessity due to local health restrictions, the event was moved to Bristol Motor Speedway in July, and last season amid NASCAR’s reshuffling of its schedule was held at Texas Motor Speedway in June. This season it returns to its May date prior to Charlotte’s 600 miler, but still at Texas.

Eligibility for the event comes from the race winners of the previous season, those who have won to date in the current season, and the winners and top finishers in a qualifying race held the same day prior to the main event along with a driver voted in by fans.

Over the years the race format has ranged from two, to three, to four segments covering 70 to currently, 125 laps. The formats have featured inversions of the field with the number determined by a spinning wheel, mandatory green flag pit stops, and even qualifying held with no speed limits on pit road.

NASCAR has also used the race to experiment. Most recently introducing a ‘choose rule’, different number placement on the cars, neon lights underneath the cars, and mechanical and aerodynamic changes.

While there have been some memorable finishes in the All-Star Race through the years, there have also been many finishes that were forgettable as most years the event was simply a test session for the following week’s 600 miler at Charlotte. This led to lackluster finishes forcing NASCAR and Speedway Motorsports (SMI), which owns the tracks and dates, to look for yet another format change for the next year, which in most cases led to more of the same.

Despite the changes over the years fans, and drivers, have seemingly grown tired of a race that, while well-intentioned, means little in the overall 36 race season.

In other words, NASCAR’s All-Star Race has grown stale.

There are several reasons for this: Other than the half-mile at Bristol in 2020 which was a necessity due to Covid, the event has been held at 1.5-mile intermediate tracks, and then only two: Charlotte and Texas. The 1.5-mile tracks comprise the bulk of the tracks the series races on meaning the teams devote significate time and resources to that length, leaving little challenge for the drivers. It’s a test session, a chance to try things without fear of affecting the points standings in the overall season.

Another reason is the payout: With multi-million-dollar yearly salaries and sponsors, to a NASCAR driver and team the sum of $1 million is almost pocket change. Yes, it’s a nice payday, but $1 million today isn’t the same as it was in 1985. Even promoting the payout is getting tiring.

Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin won the 2015 All-Star Race. He seemed to prove the point when he spoke to the media recently:

“I personally think we need to stop saying it’s for a million dollars; that’s like our promotion tagline,” he said.” It’s been that way for 30 years. We’ve got to update a little bit in these times.”

It also seems that racing at the same size tracks, in the same cities adds to the staleness. For many years the argument to hold the All-Star Race in Charlotte was the fact that the area is home to most of the teams. When the move was made to Texas, that argument fell by the wayside. And, despite the one-off year at the half-mile at Bristol, the 1.5-mile length remains.

The only other exhibition race held by NASCAR is the pre-season Clash. Last year the sport stunned the NASCAR faithful when it was announced the Clash would be held in Los Angeles at the historic L.A. Coliseum. The event was a huge success not just for the racing, but for the optics. Behind the scenes NASCAR officials are debating moving the Clash around, perhaps to tracks NASCAR normally doesn’t race on, and in cities that would allow it to showcase its product to a new fan base. Or even to places that don’t have a track, and constructing a purpose-built track to race on, as was done in L.A.

Why then can’t that sort of thinking be applied to the All-Star Race?

As NASCAR proved with its ability to pivot and overcome the challenges of Covid in 2020, and the willingness to try new tracks and schedule changes, it’s nearly head scratching that there would be no consideration to moving the All-Star Race to different cities, and different tracks.

NASCAR and SMI were once reluctant partners, bitter rivals in business almost, but during the Covid season proved they could work together, and by all accounts continue to do so. Maybe it’s time for the two to work together some more; explore different places to hold an All-Star Race. It may not always be an SMI venue, but the payoff could benefit everyone.

The NFL holds its version of an All-Star game, the Pro-Bowl, in stadiums that normally don’t hold NFL games. The MLB and NBA moves their respective All-Star games around to different cities announcing the locations several years ahead. The leagues give the respective cities plenty of time to prepare, and market the games, which helps to ensure few empty seats.

NASCAR and SMI need to work together to do the same. Don’t wait to announce the location of the next All-Star Race until the season is half over; perhaps a two-year window would give cities time to prepare, and hype, the race. Bragging rights so to speak.

Perhaps once the cities are announced drivers and their teams could choose a local charity in that area to race for, a charity where $1 million would make a huge impact. Or choose deserving fans in the area. A $1 million payday for a fan would be life changing; for a local charity it could be a game changer. Promoting $1 million might then be a more meaningful tagline.

Of course, in today’s climate it certainly won’t be easy; contracts need to be drawn up among other things, but as was proven during the time of Covid NASCAR can do seemingly do whatever it takes to not only keep the sport going but thrive.

“I’d like to see it move in general,” Hamlin said. “I felt the year we did it in Bristol brought some electricity, brought some interest; it was different than the norm, but there’s contracts in our sport, right; SMI owns the date, and they can take it to whatever track they’d like to see it, (right now) Texas is the place.”

This year’s format by the way features an elimination bracket among other things; all part of a confusing set of rules that, as in year’s past, is intended to provide an exciting finish.

“I looked at the format,” Hamlin said chuckling. “It just looked like a lot of fine print to me, it was very hard to figure out.”

As it stands, NASCAR’s All-Star Race is nothing more than generations of memories of popcorn. It needs to be reimagined before fans get too bored and decide to spend their money on other things. The sport has proven in the last few years that it isn’t afraid to push the envelope, and that needs to include the All-Star Race. It may not be able to claim the title of “The Greatest Show on Earth” but NASCAR can certainly become the “Greatest Motorsport in America”.