The Cup Series heats up tonight as drivers take to the track at North Wilkesboro Speedway for the 2025 NASCAR All-Star Race. 250 laps, no points on the line, just some good ol’ short track racing with a $1,000,000 payday and bragging rights to the winner. What more could a fan ask for? (This is a rhetorical question. Please take your tinfoil hats off and keep your mouths shut, please.)
North Wilkesboro Speedway is a 0.625 mile asphalt oval that features 14 degrees of banking in the turns and three degrees of banking on the straightaways, not to mention subtle downhill sloping on the frontstretch and subtle uphill sloping on the backstretch. One of many classic short tracks of the sport with tons of history, North Wilkesboro was first opened in 1947 and hosted NASCAR annually from 1949 to 1996, and again since it reopened in August 2022 after a lengthy closure and revival. I could sit here and preach strategy, but it’s pretty straightforward. Passing is difficult, unless you’re Kyle Larson, of course, so having track position is important to success, and getting it in any way possible is your most important goal on the day. Having speed and handling matters too, but track position is king, plain and simple. Passing is difficult on short tracks in the Next Gen car, so if a driver can get their car to the top five, they stand a good chance of staying there. Patience is also a virtue on short tracks. Difficult passing = impatience. 250 laps is a long time, so just staying calm and methodically working your way forward will go a long way towards finally success. Much in the same realm, managing your equipment is also important on short tracks. Don’t burn up your tires, avoid taking on a lot of body damage early and only use the chrome horn if you have to. It’s short track racing, so there’s going to be beating and banging. But the driver who better manages their equipment will be better primed to put on a late race charge, especially if there is a short run to the finish. Will tempers flare? Absolutely. Will there be another post race scuffle take place? Time will tell, but the odds are good, especially with this much money on the line.
Each year, the format for the All-Star Race seemingly changes. Here’s the format for this year:
All-Star Open Format: 100 laps, with a competition caution around lap 50. All laps will count, and there will be one attempt at overtime, if needed. The top two finishing drivers advance to the All-Star Race, as will the Fan Vote winner.
All-Star Race Format: 250 laps, with a competition caution around lap 100. An optional promoters caution can be used anytime before lap 220, but it expires if a natural caution occurs after Lap 200. Standard overtime rules in place.
Manufacturer Showdown: All three manufacturers have an equal number of entries. The manufacturer with the lowest combined total of finishing positions wins the Showdown. Single best overall finishing position will determine the winner if there is a tie.
The All-Star Race was first held in 1985 and has been contested at 5 different tracks: Charlotte Motor Speedway (1985, 1987-2019), Atlanta Motor Speedway (1986), Bristol Motor Speedway (2020), Texas Motor Speedway (2021-2022) and North Wilkesboro Speedway (2023 to present). Many of the sport’s best have won this race through the years, as well as the occasional upset along the way. Jimmie Johnson has won the All-Star Race the most, finding Victory Lane four times in his career. Dale Earnhardt Sr., Jeff Gordon and Kyle Larson have each won this event three times, while Davey Allison, Kevin Harvick, Terry Labonte, Joey Logano and Mark Martin are all multi-time winners of this race.
Last year’s edition was won by Joey Logano, who put an absolute ass-whooping on the field. Logano started from the Pole and led 199 of the 200 laps on the way to his second career All-Star Race victory and a $1,000,000 payday. Denny Hamlin finished in second, Chris Buescher finished third, Kyle Larson finished fourth and Ryan Blaney rounded out the top five. Brad Keselowski led the only other lap on the day, finishing in 16th position.
Coverage of the All-Star Open can be seen on Fox Sports 1, with green flag coverage beginning at 5 PM EST. Coverage of the All-Star Race can also be seen on Fox Sports 1, with NASCAR RaceDay beginning at 7 PM EST and green flag coverage beginning at 8 PM EST.
Which Drivers Will Advance From The All-Star Open:
2025 has been right on the edge of being a breakout campaign for Ryan Preece, who has posted one top five and a quartet of top 10 finishes in his first season driving the #60 Ford Mustang for Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing, all of which would be good enough to snag the last position in the Playoffs on points. The Heartbreak Kid after being relegated from runner-up to 38th place at Talladega after failing post-race inspection, Preece has rebounded and is chipping away at securing a playoff spot, finishing 7th last week at Kansas, earning stage points in both stages along the way after qualifying outside the top 30. A driver who made hay in his early career on the short track circuit, Preece has put that expertise on display early on this weekend, showing solid short and long run speed in Practice and qualifying in 5th place for the All-Star Open. I predict that Preece will capitalize on his starting position and make his way forward from the get go to easily claim one of the two transfer positions for the All-Star Race.
Fresh off of a rookie campaign that saw him finish 21st in points while driving the #77 for Spire Motorsports, Carson Hocevar is not experiencing a sophomore slump in 2025. Far from it, actually. Hocevar has earned one top five, two top 10’s, four top 15 finishes and one Pole through the first 12 races of the season, good enough to slot in at 19th in the Point Standings, firmly in the mix for a Playoff spot. Hocevar has shown already that he has the prowess for short track racing, finishing 8th at Richmond last season and posting a pair of 11th place finishes at Bristol. Hocevar has shown great pace so far this weekend, ranking inside the top 10 in 20, 25 and 30 Lap Averages. Hocevar will start the All-Star Open on the front row alongside Shane van Gisbergen. Having track position is so vital to having success at North Wilkesboro, and with Hocevar’s pace, I have no doubt that he will drive away from the field and win the All-Star Open!
Which Driver Will Win The Fan Vote:
Truly a man of the people, Noah Gragson has had a very up and down start to his 2025 campaign in his first season driving the #4 for Front Row Motorsports, with one top five, two top 10’s and six finishes of 25th or worse in the first third of the season. Gragson does have some momentum on his side though, logging top 15’s in two of his last three starts, including a season-best finish of 4th at Talladega. Gragson has also put together some respectable showings in the last two All-Star Opens, finishing 7th and 5th. Although not good enough to transfer on pace, Gragson has been well-liked enough by the fans to win the Fan Vote each of the last two years. Gragson hasn’t necessarily has the fastest hot rod at North Wilkesboro this weekend, but he did manage to qualify in 3rd place for the All-Star Open. It would be ideal for Gragson if he qualified on raw speed alone, but who cares! Sometimes, it pays to be well-liked. With another victory, Gragson would join Chase Elliott (2016, 2017, 2018) as the only three-time winner of the Fan Vote. This nice guy could very well finish last at the All-Star Open, but I predict that Noah Gragson will be racing in the All-Star Race this evening by winning the Fan Vote!
2025 has been a season of modest success for Chase Briscoe as he pilots the #19 Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing for the first time, logging four top fives, five top 10’s and earning one Pole, good enough to sit 12th in the Point Standings. Briscoe has had solid success on the short tracks this season, finishing 4th at Bristol and 9th at Martinsville. On the flip side, Briscoe has had mixed results at North Wilkesboro, finishing 4th in the All-Star Race in 2023 and finishing 7th in the All-Star Open in 2024. This weekend has not looked promising so far for Briscoe, showing minimal pace in Practice and finishing 7th in his Heat Race. Qualified for tonight’s race thanks to his victory last season in the Southern 500, Briscoe rolls out from 14th, and will need to work quickly if he hopes to stay on the lead lap as the race carries on. I have no doubt that Briscoe will struggle tonight and predict that he will finish outside the top 15 at the All-Star Race.
It’s a great time to be a Wood Brothers fan, with Josh Berry leading the resurgence in 2025. The results don’t necessarily show it, but Berry has put together a strong campaign for the oldest team in the sport, taking the win at Las Vegas to go along with two top fives and three top 10’s. With newfound pace and improved track position seemingly every week, the Wood Brothers and Berry come to their bread and butter: short track racing. Berry cut his teeth on the short track circuits as he worked his way up the ranks and is always a favorite when the track size shrinks. Berry showed consistent pace on both short and long runs in Practice and will start tonight’s race from 11th place, courtesy of a 6th place finish in his Heat Race. A win would be unheralded given his starting position, but a top 10 finish is certainly within Berry’s grasp tonight.
Christopher Bell came out of the gates swinging in 2025, winning three straight races at Atlanta, Circuit of the Americas and Phoenix. He hasn’t won since, but has put together many quality races, posting three top fives and five top 10’s in the eight races since. His short track results have been solid so far in 2025, finishing runner-up at Martinsville after starting on the Pole and finishing 8th at Bristol. Despite Bell’s short track successes, North Wilkesboro has proven an elusive whale for him, finishing 12th in 2023 and finishing 17th last year. Bell had great pace, ranking inside the top 10 on 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 Lap Averages in Practice and will start on the front row after winning his Heat Race yesterday. With track position secured and a really fast car underneath him, Bell will be a threat to win the All-Star Race. Expect Bell to lead some laps early and be in the hunt all race long. A top 10 finish is a lock tonight.
2025 has very much been feast or famine for Joey Logano, posting only three top 10 finishes in the first 12 races, with one of those finishes being a victory at Texas. North Wilkesboro has been an enigma for Logano, who finished 10th here in 2023, but started on the Pole and led 199 of the 200 laps on the way to a victory in last year’s All-Star Race. Logano is seemingly picking up in 2025 where he left off last season, showing solid pace in Practice, including pacing the field on 20, 25 and 30 Lap Averages. And just like last year, Logano will once again have the early position, rolling out from 4th place tonight after a runner-up showing in his Heat Race yesterday. He may not dominate every week, but when the pay window opens and the chips are on the line, the #22 always seems to step up and deliver. I’m taking Joey Logano to take home that million dollar payday and win the All-Star Race for the second straight year!
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