After yet another underwhelming NASCAR All-Star Race which was so weird they ended it twice, it's time to take a look at how things can be improved, if it's not already too late...
Images: NASCAR, RFK Racing
Almost every top-tier sport has some kind of all-star showcase or champion's event, wherein only the best players compete for some kind of prize outside of the regular competition schedule. The NBA and MLB All-Star Games are probably the two which pull this off the best of anyone, but others are, shall we say, less successful. The NFL's Pro Bowl has slowly slid into mediocrity as incentive and interest has waned over the past few years. However in terms of meaninglessness, NASCAR's showcase event, the not-too-surprisingly-named All-Star Race, has arguably beaten it to the punch.
This Year's Effort
We had the All-Star Race at Texas Motor Speedway this year, a track which has fallen out of favor on its own due to the poor races held there and the endless efforts to mettle with the surface in an attempt to manufacture good racing. So, the signs were not promising before a single lap was turned. To nobody's surprise, the race itself was not exactly a worldly one, as more or less the car that led the first lap after a restart would not be passed. Add in a bizarre, self-inflicted rules debacle created by NASCAR's last-ditch effort to spice up the race after a last-lap incident, and probably the only person who walked away from that race being satisfied was Ryan Blaney, who won.
So how can we make things better? Let's take a look...
The Setting
First off, do not hold this race in Texas again. It's the motor racing equivalent to someone who keeps getting plastic surgery in order to make themselves look appealing, but after each operation they just look more and more distorted. For many years, the race was held in Charlotte, NC at Charlotte Motor Speedway. A track which to the layman looks fairly similar to Texas, but which still has some dignity and can produce good racing. Now the All-Star Race is typically held at Charlotte because 1) the racing is generally quite decent and 2) the majority of teams are based nearby, making it easily justifiable in terms of cost, because travel and time commitments are minimal. So, I think it's perfectly fine to move it back to Charlotte, because I like the track and it seems to make a lot of sense for those involved.
Now, it is a little bit odd, because the next race after (and also at Charlotte) is typically the Coca-Cola 600, which is one of NASCAR's "crown jewel" races. So there is a bit of a problem in terms of double-dipping on marquee events at one track. Lately the race has been rotated around (Texas and Bristol have held the races recently), which is an interesting idea and would allow for greater variation in tracks. If NASCAR wants to go this route, then they should make a rule which prohibits a track from hosting more than one All-Star race every three years. That would mean a decent rotation of tracks, with some variability year-on-year, similar to other leagues' All-Star event. These would be my rotating picks for tracks to host the All-Star Race, based on what provides good racing and/or also makes logistical sense (in no particular order):
Charlotte
Kansas (instead of spring race)
Darlington (instead of spring race)
Homestead-Miami
Rockingham
North Wilkesboro
There's probably more, but Kansas and Homestead provide good races, while Darlington and Rockingham are close by. Given the state of NASCAR at the moment, short tracks do not seem to produce great racing right now, so I would hesitate to go to Martinsville or Bristol just yet. I put North Wilkesboro on here because it would be the most convenient short track, but as we know, short tracks are not this car's forte. Also, it's not in the condition it needs to be to host any sort of top-level competition. Personally, though, I would keep it at Charlotte. As such, any time I give specific lap counts for anything, it will be based on a 1.5 mile track length.
Eligibility
Because it's a "showcase" event of only the sport's best, there needs to be some criteria which defines the entry list. Even this criteria is different year-to-year, such is NASCAR's ADHD. The typical (non All-Star) race has 36-40 entries, so realistically we should aim for a field of 20 cars. If you have well over half the field being coined as "All-Stars" then you severely diminish the value of being one. Here's who should populate the field:
Race Winners (from All-Star race to All-Star Race, including previous year's All-Star winner) (no limit, typically 12-15 drivers)
Past Cup Champions (who are attempting a full season, and assuming they haven't won any races in the past year; priority given to most recent)
Fan Vote
Remaining slots filled by All-Star Open winners (see below)
Now, I realize that there is a potential that we could have 20 slots filled by race winners, the champions, and the fan vote, but the chances of this are relatively low, based on history. In that instance, we should always have at least 3 transfers from the Open, even if we have over 20 cars.
The Format
Every year, NASCAR seems to change the format of the All-Star Race, if nothing else for the sake of change. That needs to stop, and also it applies to both qualifying and the race itself. But not before one last change. Here's what I think the weekend should look like:
Friday
1hr combined practice with the full field
Open Qualifying
Standard Best-of-2 single-lap runs, reverse order of practice speeds
Skills Showdown (Each one has $100,000 reward)
Burnout Competition
Slalom Challenge
Drag Race Tournament
Pit stop Competition
Saturday
All-Star Open
3 Stages (20-20-10)
Each stage winner advances to ASR
Pit stop limits
If additional cars needed, runners up of Stage 3 advance
All-Star Qualifying
2 Rounds, use modified 2018 format
Top 6 advance to Round 2
All-Star Race
4 Stages (20-30-40-10)
Must make at least two 4-tire stops, one of which must be under green in Stage 3
Winner of each stage gets $100,000 bonus
Winner of Stage 4 gets $1 million
That's very detailed. (Almost like I've thought about this for many years...) Anyways, let's break down all of the meaningful aspects of this new format:
Open Qualifying
Nothing game-changing here. Just do it more or less in the same way it is currently done both for the Open and for other tracks, with the two-lap single-car runs in reverse order of practice speeds, therefore the cars should be faster as the session goes.
Skills Showdown
This is the mostly-new part of the event, and is something which would offer great fan engagement as well as a TV event. This would help create a festival-type atmosphere at the event and on TV. It's made up of four events, each with a cash bonus (I threw out $100k, but it could be any number). They are:
Burnout Competition
This used to be a part of the All-Star weekend, why did it go away? Simple enough, each driver gets some allotted time to do a burnout and then it's scored by a panel of judges. Maybe there's a few props or something we could add for some spice. Best score wins. In the event of a tie, we have a sudden death showdown between the top 2. This should already be a part of it anyways. As it was.
Slalom Challenge
I called it slalom, and it might well take that form, but realistically I mean some kind of low-speed skills challenge. Think like a Gran Turismo License Test, or a similar short track which each driver has to traverse. Best time wins, penalties for knocking over cones or other incidents. If you want to go crazy you could even build some kind of arena or something for fans, but that's a bit extreme.
Drag Race Tournament
As it sounds, it's a bracketed drag race along some straightaway, where drivers go head to head to reach a predetermined finish line. Do an NHRA-style lights countdown and then go! Each race probably only takes 10-20 seconds, so we could click this off fairly quickly.
Pit Stop Competition
Another previous feature of the All-Star weekend, each team has to execute a 4-tire pit stop in the fastest time. Whoever does it best wins. Maybe double money for the crew, if we are feeling generous.
All-Star Open
Similar to the current format, with a twist. We have a 50-lap event, where the stages are 20-20-10. Winner of each stage advances. However; you are only allowed to change four tires. This can either be done by changing four tires all at once, or by changing two tires twice. Additional strategy elements at play here. Also, if we need more than 3 transfers to the ASR, then the final stage finishing order will determine who goes on.
All-Star Qualifying
This was my favorite part of the entire weekend growing up. Why? Because for many years the ASR had one of the most unique and craziest qualifying formats. So we're bringing it back, with only a couple of slight changes. Each driver does 3 laps, and must include a 4-tire pit stop on either their first or second lap. Drivers must enter at pit road speed, and speeding is a DSQ, so risk-reward is at play. After the pit stop, they can exit at full speed as soon as the jack drops. However, in the second round (for the top 6) there is NO pit speed limit on entry. Drivers can floor it out of the pits in order to make up time, and can enter as fast as they dare (provided the track is laid out appropriately. Again, it works fine at Charlotte).
All-Star Race
This is like the Open's bigger brother. 4 stages, going 20-30-40-10, where the winner of each of the first three stages makes $100,000 bonus and the winner of the whole show is the classic $1 million. The twist is that in the third stage you must complete a green-flag 4-tire pit stop, and in the fourth stage only green flag laps count. Everything else is up to the teams and drivers. No stupid inversion rules or anything.
The Event
I remember going to many NASCAR races over the last 15 years, and for a while it used to be great; you'd go to the track a few hours early on race day (or even on Saturday to see the support races, fancy that!), where you could go to all kind of events and buy merchandise, it was great. However, the last couple of times I've gone, the atmosphere has just been flat. It's like everyone's just given up. I know there is a cost factor here, so it's much more complex than saying "teams just don't want to be accommodating anymore." But still, my point stands.
I live in Kansas, about 20-30 minutes from the track, but when NASCAR was here just a few weeks ago, I would have had no idea. Similar stories were shared regarding the race in Texas last year, when there was a discussion about race promotion after the sellout crowds that series like F1 and Indycar are pulling in week in and week out. (If you dismiss the Indycar Texas race, but if you're not sensing the theme that Texas is a problem child, you should be). NASCAR seemed to pull out all the stops with the Clash, although even then they couldn't fill a stadium in one of the largest cities in the Western hemisphere. My point is; make this an event. The All-Star Race should be a festival and showcase of talent. If you want to have a pre-race or post-race concert, go for it. Give extended access to the drivers or teams if you want.
I know that these days TV ratings and revenue are everything to NASCAR, at the expense of trackside amenities. But don't you think people can see that your stands are half empty? To me that says, "oh, I don't want to go there, it looks sad." That wears on you over time. I mean you can watch the F1 Australian Grand Prix and see, "wow, these people look like they're having the time of their lives. I want to do that!" You can't say that about a NASCAR race at the moment (with the exception of maybe the Daytona 500 and the championship race, and maybe the Coke 600).
Summary
So, although I am annoyed by the continuous gimmicks that NASCAR keeps throwing at the wall, hoping something sticks, I think the All-Star Race is the only place these are acceptable. Make the thing seem like an event, a party of sorts. Look at how F1 promotes itself in the countries where it races, and NASCAR can learn a trick or two. The ASR is supposed to be fun, the last few years have felt like a chore more than a reward. Let's change that.
Oh, and do the whole thing at night, please. Everything looks so much cooler at night.
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