2011 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race explained

2011 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race
Race details[1]
Date May 21, 2011
Location Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina
CoursePermanent racing facility
1.5 mi (2.4 km)
Distance100 laps, 150 mi (240 km)- style="vertical-align: middle;"Weather-->
Avg Speed
Sprint Showdown<-- - style="vertical-align: middle;"Pole position-->
WinnerDavid Ragan, Roush Fenway Racing
Sprint All-Star Race
Pole positionKyle Busch, Joe Gibbs Racing
Showdown transfersDavid Ragan (Showdown winner)
Brad Keselowski (Showdown runner-up)
Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Fan vote)
Most laps ledGreg Biffle, Roush Fenway Racing (46)
WinnerCarl Edwards, Roush Fenway Racing
Television
Network Speed
Announcers Mike Joy, Darrell Waltrip and Michael Waltrip

The 2011 NASCAR Sprint Showdown and Sprint All-Star Race was the 27th running of NASCAR's special non-points race involving winners of the 2010 and 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races through the 2011 FedEx 400 as well as Sprint All-Star Race 2001–2010 winners, when the event was known as "The Winston" and the "Nextel All-Star Challenge", and past Sprint Cup champions from the decade covering 2001 to 2010, including the "Winston Cup" (2001–2003) and "Nextel Cup" (2004–2007) eras. The event was run at the 1.5miles Charlotte Motor Speedway in the Charlotte, North Carolina suburb of Concord on May 21, 2011. Speed provided television coverage in the United States while MRN (over-the-air/terrestrial) and Sirius XM Radio (satellite) had radio rights.

Race format

The format of the race was similar to the 2010 event, broken down as follows:

The qualifying session for eligible drivers consisted of three laps instead of the standard two, including a pit stop after either of the first two laps, slowing to the speed limit of 45 mph entering pit road, but going full throttle as they exit.

Eligible drivers

The following drivers qualified for the race in these categories:

Past Series Champion drivers

The following five drivers fit into the Past Champions category:

Past All-Star race-winning drivers

The following four drivers are eligible as a past winner of the event in the last decade:

2010 or 2011 race winners

The following ten drivers are eligible by winning a Sprint Cup points race in 2010 or 2011:

For those not listed above, a special race, The Sprint Showdown, consisting of two halves of 20 laps [{{convert|30|mi|km}}] each was held prior to the main event. The top two finishers and a driver chosen by a fan poll were promoted to the main event:

Only winning drivers, not teams, are eligible to race in the All-Star Race; previously a team could qualify for the race even if the driver who won a race for the team was no longer employed by them.

* - Trevor Bayne was scheduled to run in the All Star Race, but the Wood Brothers team withdrew him due to him still recovering from an illness.

Entry List

Showdown

DriverTeamMake
2 Dodge
6 Ford
09 Chevrolet
9 Ford
13 Toyota
20 Toyota
27 Chevrolet
30 Chevrolet
31 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
32 Ford
34 Ford
37 Ford
38 Front Row Motorsports Ford
43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford
47 Toyota
50 T. J. Bell (R) Chevrolet
56 Toyota
60 Germain Racing Toyota
64 Max Q Motorsports Ford
66 Toyota
71 Andy Lally (R) Ford
81 Chevrolet
83 Toyota
87 Toyota
88 Chevrolet
92 Chevrolet
95 Ford

All-Star Race

DriverTeamMake
00 Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota
1 Chevrolet
4 Red Bull Racing Toyota
5 Jimmie JohnsonHendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
14 Chevrolet
16 Roush Fenway Racing Ford
17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford
18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
22 Penske Racing Dodge
24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
25 Mark MartinHendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
29 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
39 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet
42 Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet
78 Chevrolet
99 Roush Fenway Racing Ford

* - Jimmie Johnson, who usually runs the #48 car, ran the #5 for Lowe's 5% off purchase on their credit card

** - Mark Martin, who usually runs the #5 car, ran the #25 car as a throwback the first #25 car 25 years ago in 1986 driven by Tim Richmond.

Qualifying

Showdown

Pos.DriverTeamMake
1 6 David Ragan Roush Fenway Racing Ford
2 43 A. J. Allmendinger Richard Petty Motorsports Ford
3 27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
4 2 Brad Keselowski Penske Racing Dodge
5 31 Jeff Burton Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
6 9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Ford
7 56 Martin Truex Jr. Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota
8 34 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford
9 20 Joey Logano Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
10 83 Brian Vickes Red Bull Racing Toyota
11 13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Toyota
12 60 Mike Skinner Germain Racing Toyota
13 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
14 47 Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Racing Toyota
15 09 Landon Cassill Phoenix Racing Chevrolet
16 38 Travis Kvapil Front Row Motorsports Ford
17 66 Todd Bodine HP Racing Toyota
18 81 J. J. Yeley Whitney Motorsports Chevrolet
19 87 Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports Toyota
20 71 Andy Lally (R) TRG Motorsports Ford
21 50 T. J. Bell (R) LTD Powersports, LLC. Chevrolet
22 95 David Starr Leavine Family Racing Ford
23 37 Tony Raines Max Q Motorsports Ford
24 32 Boris Said FAS Lane Racing Ford
25 64 Derrike Cope Max Q Motorsports Ford
26 30 David Stremme Inception Motorsports Chevrolet
27 92 Brian Keselowski K-Automotive Motorsports Chevrolet

All-Star Race

Pos.DriverTeamMake
1 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
2 33 Clint Bowyer Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
3 16 Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing Ford
4 99 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing Ford
5 25 Mark Martin Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
6 14 Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet
7 4 Kasey Kahne Red Bull Racing Toyota
8 42 Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet
9 1 Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet
10 39 Ryan Newman Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet
11 5 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
12 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
13 17 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford
14 29 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
15 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
16 22 Kurt Busch Penske Racing Dodge
17 78 Regan Smith Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet
18 00 David Reutimann Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota
19 6 David Ragan* Roush Fenway Racing Ford
20 2 Brad Keselowski** Penske Racing Dodge
21 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr.*** Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

* - Won the Showdown

** - Showdown runner up

*** - Fan Vote winner

Results

Showdown

Pos.DriverTeamMakeLapsLedStatus
1 6 David Ragan Roush Fenway Racing Ford 40 22 running
2 2 Brad Keselowski Penske Racing Dodge 40 18 running
3 9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 40 0 running
4 43 A. J. Allmendinger Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 40 0 running
5 20 Joey Logano Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 40 0 running
6 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 40 0 running
7 34 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 40 0 running
8 47 Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Racing Toyota 40 0 running
9 31 Jeff Burton Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 40 0 running
10 83 Brian Vickers Red Bull Racing Toyota 40 0 running
11 27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 40 0 running
12 13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Toyota 40 0 running
13 56 Martin Truex Jr. Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 40 0 running
14 81 J. J. Yeley Whitney Motorsports Chevrolet 40 0 running
15 60 Mike Skinner Germain Racing Toyota 40 0 running
16 38 Travis Kvapil Front Row Motorsports Ford 40 0 running
17 66 Todd Bodine HP Racing Toyota 40 0 running
18 50 T. J. Bell (R) LTD Powersports, LLC. Chevrolet 40 0 running
19 87 Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports Toyota 40 0 running
20 92 Brian Keselowski K-Automotive Motorsports Chevrolet 40 0 running
21 37 Tony Raines Max Q Motorsports Ford 40 0 running
22 95 David Starr Leavine Family Racing Ford 29 0 ignition
23 71 Andy Lally (R) TRG Motorsports Ford 28 0 running
24 30 David Stremme Inception Motorsports Chevrolet 27 0 crash
25 32 Boris Said FAS Lane Racing Ford 3 0 crash
26 09 Landon Cassill Phoenix Racing Chevrolet 2 0 crash
27 64 Derrike Cope Max Q Motorsports Ford 2 0 crash

All-Star Race

Pos.DriverTeamMakeLapsLedStatus
1 99 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing Ford 100 29 running
2 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 100 19 running
3 00 David Reutimann Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 100 0 running
4 14 Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 100 0 running
5 16 Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing Ford 100 46 running
6 17 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford 100 0 running
7 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 100 0 running
8 6 David Ragan Roush Fenway Racing Ford 100 0 running
9 29 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 100 0 running
10 39 Ryan Newman Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 100 0 running
11 5 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 100 6 running
12 42 Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 100 0 running
13 22 Kurt Busch Penske Racing Dodge 100 0 running
14 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 100 0 running
15 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 100 0 running
16 33 Clint Bowyer Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 100 0 running
17 1 Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 100 0 running
18 2 Brad Keselowski Penske Racing Dodge 99 0 running
19 25 Mark Martin Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 93 0 crash
20 78 Regan Smith Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet 90 0 fuel pump
21 4 Kasey Kahne Red Bull Racing Toyota 59 0 crash

Other events

Induction of the 2011 Class to the NASCAR Hall of Fame

The formal inductions for the second class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame, made up of Bobby Allison, Ned Jarrett, Bud Moore, David Pearson, and Lee Petty, was held the day after the race on Sunday, May 22. This became the last year the inductions will take place in May; beginning in 2012, the ceremonies will be held in January following a June election.

Craftsman All-Star Pit Crew Challenge

The annual Craftsman All-Star Pit Crew Challenge competition was held on the Thursday prior to the race at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte. The #11 Joe Gibbs Racing team, led by Mike Ford, won the competition over the #48 of Hendrick Motorsports. As a result, the #11, driven by Denny Hamlin, received the first selection of pit stalls for the All-Star Race.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Schedule . ESPN . May 8, 2012 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20120120034554/http://espn.go.com/racing/schedule/_/year/2011 . January 20, 2012 .