NASCAR All-Star Race 2015: Format, Start Time, Lineup, TV Schedule and More

To say that the format for the NASCAR All-Star Race is confusing in an understatement. Quite honestly, some of the luster that should be associated with the high-profile event is lost as fans try to get a handle on how this thing works. Once you grasp the full concept, it's actually pretty cool.

Hopefully, the next few hundred words will help to shed some light. Let's start with qualifying. Here's a list of the drivers who are already in the field, per NASCAR.com:

Car No.	Driver	Sponsor	Owner
1	Jamie McMurray	Bass Pro Shops	Felix Sabates
2	Brad Keselowski	Miller Lite	Roger Penske
4	Kevin Harvick	Hunt Brothers Pizza	Tony Stewart
5	Kasey Kahne	Time Warner Cable	Linda Hendrick
11	Denny Hamlin	FedEx Express	J.D. Gibbs
14	Tony Stewart	Bass Pro Shops / Arctic Cat	Margaret Haas
18	Kyle Busch	M&M's Red Nose Day	Joe Gibbs
19	Carl Edwards	Arris	J.D. Gibbs
20	Matt Kenseth	Dollar General	Joe Gibbs
22	Joey Logano	Shell Pennzoil	Walter Czarnecki
24	Jeff Gordon	Axalta	Rick Hendrick
31	Ryan Newman	CAT-Quicken Loans	Richard Childress
41	Kurt Busch	Haas Automation	Gene Haas
43	Aric Almirola	Smithfield	Richard Petty
47	AJ Allmendinger	Kingsford	Tad Geschickter
48	Jimmie Johnson	Lowe's Patriotic	Jeff Gordon
88	Dale Earnhardt Jr	Mountain Dew Baja Blast	Rick Hendrick

 

Those who aren't already in the lineup must qualify during the Sprint Showdown on Friday. That list of drivers is below, per NASCAR.com:

Car No.	Driver	Sponsor	Owner
3	Austin Dillon	Dow	Richard Childress
6	Trevor Bayne	AdvoCare	John Henry
7	Alex Bowman	TBA	Tommy Baldwin Jr
9	Sam Hornish Jr	Victory Junction/Shop.com	Richard Petty
10	Danica Patrick	Mobil 1 / Aspen Dental	Tony Stewart
13	Casey Mears	GEICO Military	Bob Germain
15	Clint Bowyer	Cherry 5-Hour Energy/Special Operations Warrior Foundation	Rob Kauffman
16	Greg Biffle	Ortho	Jack Roush
17	Ricky Stenhouse Jr	Fastenal	John Henry
23	J.J. Yeley	Dr. Pepper "I'm a Pepper"	Ron Devine
25	Chase Elliott	NAPA Auto Parts	Rick Hendrick
26	Jeb Burton	Maxim Fantasy Sports	Anthony Marlowe
27	Paul Menard	Serta / Menards	Richard Childress
30	Jeff Green	Curtis Key Plumbing	Curtis Key
32	Mike Bliss	TBA	Archie St. Hilaire
33	Alex Kennedy	TBA	Joe Falk
35	Cole Whitt	Speed Stick	Bob Jenkins
38	David Gilliland	Love's Travel Stops	Brad Jenkins
40	Landon Cassill	Snap Fitness	Mike Hillman Sr.
42	Kyle Larson	Target	Chip Ganassi
46	Michael Annett	Pilot Flying J	Harry Scott Jr.
51	Justin Allgaier	Brandt	Harry Scott Jr.
55	David Ragan	Aaron's Dream Machine	Michael Waltrip
62	Brendan Gaughan	VYDOX Plus	Jay Robinson
66	Tanner Berryhill	TBA	Jay Robinson

 

Sprint Showdown

Garage Opens: Friday, May 15, at 7 a.m. ET

Final Practice: Noon-1:40 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1

Qualifying: 4:15 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1

Qualifying is a two-round session. The first round is 20 minutes, and the top 12 drivers will advance to the second round. The next round lasts just five minutes. The driver with the fastest lap speeds will determine the starting positions from one through 12 in descending order.

 

Sprint Showdown Race: 7:15 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1

The actual Showdown is cut into two 20-lap segments. The winner of each advances to the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race. One other spot will be up for grabs via the Sprint Fan Vote. The winner will be announced in Victory Lane after the conclusion of the second segment. That driver will win a spot in the All-Star Race.

 

NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race

Garage Opens: Friday, May 15, at 7 a.m. ET; Saturday, May 16, at 1 p.m. ET

Final Practice: Friday, May 15, at 1:45 to 3:15 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1

Pit Road Practice: Friday, May 15, at 3:15 p.m. to 3:25 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1

Qualifying: Saturday, May 16, at 7:10 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1

Qualifying for the All-Star Race will be three timed laps with one four-tire pit stop. Pitting outside the box is an automatic disqualification.

 

The Race: Saturday, May 16, at 9 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1

There will be five segments in the All-Star Race.

Segments one through four will be 25 laps apiece. The final segment will be cut to 10 laps. The running order will be reset heading into the final segment. There are a few other details regarding pitting that you can read here, but that's the weekend's format in a nutshell. Now let's take a look at the drivers to watch for at this weekend's events.

 

Martin Truex Jr.

If he can earn a spot in the All-Star Race, Martin Truex Jr. will be one of the more intriguing entries. He's fared well on short tracks. Per Jerry Bonkowski of NBC Sports, Truex is a little down about not qualifying for the All-Star Race straight out, but he likes his chances to win a leg of the Showdown event.

"The bad news heading into the weekend is that we’re not qualified for the big show," Truex said. "The good news is that we’ll be at a 1.5-mile track which has been one of our strong suits this season.”

Last week's race was on a 1.5-mile track at Kansas Speedway, and Truex performed well. While he didn't win, he did lead for 95 laps of the race. He's hoping for a repeat performance, only he'd love to capture the checkered flag this time around.

 

Jimmie Johnson

Still hungry?

If that question were posed to four-time NASCAR All-Star Race winner Jimmie Johnson, the answer would be "yes." Despite winning the event a record four times, Johnson would love to make it five times, five times, five times (in my Booker T. voice).

There aren't any points on the line toward the driver's Sprint Cup standings, but the winner does take home $1 million. Per AutoWeek, Johnson described the All-Star experience as follows: “It’s a very rewarding night, a night the team really enjoys. There’s a different atmosphere with the pressure being off and a million reasons to have fun after.”

If other sports want to add a little spice to their All-Star showcases, they might want to follow NASCAR's lead. A cash prize tends to make athletes care about the result a little more than bragging rights.