This weekend, the NASCAR Cup Series will take a break from its 36-race grind of points-paying races and compete for $1 million in the All-Star Race at the iconic North Wilkesboro Speedway. The drivers will be the focus on Sunday, but Friday is all about the pit crews in the NASCAR Pit Crew Challenge.
All-Star Weekend presents a change of pace from most weekends, which typically consist of combined practice and qualifying sessions and the race itself. While the Pit Crew Challenge will take place for the third consecutive season, it originally began in 1967 at Rockingham Speedway and ran until 2003. Although it returned in 2005 as a bracket-style format in Charlotte, 2012 was the last time it had been featured on All-Star Weekend until 2023.
New to this year's format is the inclusion of All-Star Open teams in the competition. Open cars, which are the drivers not currently locked into the All-Star Race, will take to the track first, followed by the 20 All-Star participants.
Once they are up to speed and receive the green flag, drivers will complete one lap at speed and make the trek down pit road on their second lap for a four-tire stop. At the conclusion of the stop, drivers will race back to the start-finish line where the total elapsed time from green to checkered will set the lineup for the Open race and each of the qualifying heat races for the All-Star Race.
Bragging rights will be on the line for the quickest pit crew in the challenge. Assuming there are no penalties, the pit crew with the fastest overall stop will be declared the winner of the Pit Crew Challenge and inherit the trophy and $100,000 prize. On top of that, the pit stop time will also determine the order of pit selection.
Which pit crews are the favorites in the Pit Crew Challenge?
If the last two editions of the Pit Crew Challenge and the top five pit crews this season are any indication, expect a Toyota group to come away with the win. Joe Gibbs Racing has been the victor each of the last two seasons with Ty Gibbs' No. 54 team winning in 2023 and Christopher Bell's No. 20 bunch winning the 2024 competition with a 13.223-second stop. Front tire changer Blake Houston, tire carrier Jacob Holmes, jackman Derrell Edwards and fueler Peyton Moore were on each of those winning teams and return with Bell for 2025.
According to NASCAR Insights, the No. 20 team is not among the top five in average four-tire stops this season, but three Toyota teams are.
Team | Driver | Crew |
|---|---|---|
1. No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota | Bubba Wallace | Joe Crossen, Austin Dickey, Adam Hartman, Joshua Pech, Nathan Ricketts |
2. No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota | Ty Gibbs | Ian Anderson, Braxton Brannon, William Cooper, Jackson Gibbs, Kevon Jackson |
3. No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota | Denny Hamlin | Joel Bouagnon, Dylan Dowell, Austin Maloney, Kenneth Purcell, Deven Youker |
4. No. 17 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford | Chris Buescher | JaQuan Bailey, Travis Juedes, Nick Patterson, Jakob Prall, Bailey Walker |
5. No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet | Kyle Larson | Jafar Hall, Brandon Harder, Eric Ludwig, Michael Moss, Allen Stallings |
It would be hard to go against either one of those five teams given how they have fared so far in 2025. Regardless of who comes out on top, bragging rights will be on the line as pit crews go head-to-head to kick off the All-Star Weekend festivities. From there, focus will shift to Saturday night's 75-lap heat races that will officially set the All-Star Race starting lineup and set the stage for the All-Star Open and All-Star Race on Sunday.