I Am Getting So Excited for the All-Star Race

            There are some changes to the Sprint Cup Showdown and the All-Star Race on May 20^th and May 21^st, respectively.  I know, I know, I know!!!  When there are changes to something in NASCAR, it is not liked by some of the fans.  I think these changes to the formats are going to be good.  I’m looking forward to the changes.  Everything has not changed.  Trust me these changes are going to make both races good in less than 2 weeks.

            The criteria are still the same for the drivers who can qualify into the All-Star Race.  The drivers who won races in 2015 or so far in 2016 are eligible for the All-Star Race.  The drivers, who won the past All-Star Races within the last 10 years, are qualified to race in this year's All-Star Race.  The drivers, who are past premier series champions within the last 10 years, are qualified to race in this year's All-Star Race.  So, those changes are still the same.  There are only a total of 15 drivers who are already qualified for the All-Star Race.  The Sprint Showdown winners and the Sprint Fan Vote winner are also eligible for the All-Star Race.

            Now, let’s get to the changes to the Sprint Showdown Format that will be raced on Friday, May 20.  I almost forgot to mention that there will be no qualifying for the Sprint Showdown.  The field will be set by practice speed for the first segment.  There will be a total of 3 segments in the showdown.  The first segment will only be 20 laps.  And the winner at the end of the first segment will automatically advance to the All-Star Race.  The winner is not allowed to race the other segments.  They are done. 

            In the second segment, the field will be set by the way the drivers come off pit-road after a mandatory minimum two-tire pit stop.  They will only race 20 laps in that segment as well.  The winner at the end of the second segment will transfer to the All-Star Race.  The winner is not allowed to continue to race in the final segment.  This is kind of common sense.  Obviously, you would not want to continue since you are in the All-Star Race after winning the segment.  Sometime, these things are needed to explain to the fans who are always asking questions and they seem to ask the questions that have an obvious answer to.  Smh!!!

            In the final segment of the showdown, the field will be set by the way the drivers come off pit-road after mandatory minimum two-tire pit stop.  It is up to the team or teams if they want to risk losing spots by getting four tires.  I guess it depends on what the majority will go with two or four.  It also depends on the fall off from the tires.  The drivers will be racing the final laps with only 10 laps and the NASCAR Overtime rules do apply.  The winner of this segment will also advance into the All-Star Race. 

            The Sprint Fan Vote winner will be announced after the showdown race.  Now, there is a possibility that another driver will get added from the fan vote.  Pay attention to what I am about to say.  The 15 drivers who qualified already plus the 3 from the Sprint Showdown, and then the Sprint Fan Vote winner will make the field have a total of 19 cars.  If a non-qualified All-Star driver wins at Dover this weekend, the driver will be qualified into the All-Star Race and that will make the field complete with 20 drivers.  If a qualified All-Star driver wins at Dover, the 20^th driver will be decided by the Sprint Fan Vote as well.   So, it is a possibility that there will be two winners from the fan vote.  NASCAR would like the All-Star Race to have a minimum of 20 cars.  It depends on Dover this weekend.  So, that could make the Dover race exciting this weekend.

            There will still be qualifying for the Sprint All-Star Race.  I haven’t heard any changes to that yet.  We will see if there will be any changes.  The qualifying procedure will set the field for the start of the first segment that will consist of 50 laps.  There will be a mandatory green flag pit stop for a minimum of two tires.  When those 50 laps are over, there will be a 3-5 minutes break that is mandatory with a minimum two tire change before the second segment.

The field will be set by pit-road exit to start the second segment.  There will be 50 laps in this segment as well.  There will also be a mandatory green flag pit stop for a minimum of two tires, but the driver has to pit before lap 85.  At the end of the 50 laps of the second segment, there will be another break that will last from 3-5 minutes.  This is when things could get very exciting.  There will be a random draw to decide if the top-9, 10, or 11 cars will have to come down to pit road for a mandatory four tire pit stop.  Pit road will be closed to the other drivers. 

            When the drivers exit pit road, it will determine the lineup for the final segment.  The drivers coming off pit road must line up behind the drivers who stayed out.  There will be 13 laps in this segment.  I have no idea where 13 would come from.  I don’t get the 13 laps because it is kind of odd.  In this last segment, the green flag laps will only count and NASCAR Overtime procedures apply to the last segment. 

            The All-Star Race is going to be so fun and exciting.  I can’t wait.  I don’t think this All-Star Race will be boring.  The changes to the segments are what going to make the race very exciting.  I’m looking forward to it.  I do wonder though, will some drivers be sandbagging during the second segment of the All-Star Race?  I guess it depends on the tires for the All-Star Race.  I guess we will have to wait and see.