Which drivers are eligible for the 2018 NASCAR All-Star Race?
By Nick Tylwalk
See the list of drivers who are eligible to go for the $1 million prize in the NASCAR All-Star Race in May.
There’s nothing but money and bragging rights on the line every year in the NASCAR All-Star Race, but that doesn’t mean fans ignore it. In fact, the impression that most NASCAR fans give off is that they’d like more of a reason to get into the event, which takes place every May at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
NASCAR is doing its best to provide that motivation with a new rules package and format intended to promote closer racing and an easier to understand affair. It’s definitely a worthwhile effort, though we won’t know for another few weeks if it will pay off.
What hasn’t changed as much is how drivers qualify for the 2018 NASCAR All-Star Race. As it has been in years past, the field will be comprised of race winners from the 2017 and 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series seasons, past All-Star Race winners who are competing in the Cup Series full-time, and former Cup Series champions who aren’t eligible via either of the other two criteria.
Currently, 17 drivers are in the field for this year, though only 16 are likely to compete.
(List up to date as of April 11.)
2018 NASCAR All-Star Race eligible drivers list
2017 or 2018 NASCAR Cup Series race winners
- Ryan Blaney
- Clint Bowyer
- Kurt Busch
- Kyle Busch
- Austin Dillon
- Denny Hamlin
- Kevin Harvick
- Jimmie Johnson
- Kasey Kahne
- Matt Kenseth (not competing in NASCAR in 2018)
- Brad Keselowski
- Kyle Larson
- Joey Logano
- Ryan Newman
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
- Martin Truex Jr.
Former All-Star Race winners
- Jamie McMurray
The field will still grow prior to the running of the Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race on May 19. There are still five more races — Bristol, Richmond, Talladega, Dover and Kansas — that provide chances for more drivers to win their way in. On top of that, the All-Star Race will be preceded by the Monster Energy Open, and since the stage and race winners from that race will all advance to the main event, as many as three additional drivers could make the show.
Finally, a fan vote will get one more driver into the All-Star Race, so the field could potentially add as many as nine more drivers before the green flag flies. More likely, though, is that somewhere between 18 and 23 drivers will end up competing for the $1 million awarded to the winner.