Roush Fenway Weekly Advance | All-Star
NASCAR’s All-Star event, typically run in May, is set for Wednesday night as teams battle at Bristol Motor Speedway for the $1 million payout. Jack Roush looks to add to his four All-Star wins, as Ryan Newman is one of 16 drivers locked into the main event and teammate Chris Buescher will attempt to race his way in through the All-Star Open.
Bristol Motor Speedway
NASCAR All Star Open
Wednesday, July 15 | 7 p.m. ET
FS1, MRN, SiriusXM Channel 90
· Chris Buescher, No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang
Bristol Motor Speedway
NASCAR All-Star Race
Wednesday, July 15 | 8:30 p.m. ET
FS1, MRN, SiriusXM Channel 90
· Ryan Newman, No. 6 Oscar Mayer Ford Mustang
NASCAR All-Star Event on Deck
NASCAR will make history Wednesday when it heads to Bristol Motor Speedway for the All-Star Race for the first time. Outside of the 1986 event in Atlanta, the race has been held in Charlotte each year. However, due to ongoing implications from COVID-19, officials moved the event to ‘The World’s Fastest Half Mile’ for the 2020 event.
The main event will have four stages consisting of a 55-lap opening run, back-to-back 35 laps sequences, and a final 15 lap stage. Only green-flag laps will count in the final stage, and the final stage will end with a checkered flag. The Open event, which Buescher will participate in, will have three stages. The first two will consist of 35 laps, with the final stage running 15 laps. The winner of each stage as well as the winner of the All-Star Fan Vote will advance to the main event.
New to the event in 2020, car numbers will appear farther back on the side panels of the cars. The change will put each car’s primary partner now in the center – below the door – with the number shifted to just in front of the rear tires.
Also new to the All-Star Race is the choose rule, a method used commonly throughout the grassroots levels of racing for restarts. When drivers approach a designated spot on the track, they must commit to the inside or outside lane for the restart. Failure to make a clear choice or changing lanes after the designated spot will result in a tail-of-the-field penalty. This is different from the current double-file restart system, where only the race leader chooses his lane. Having the rule for the All-Star Race gives every driver the ability to make his own decision, and strategy will come into play in every instance.
Kentucky Recap, Bristol Preview
· Newman picked off multiple positions in the closing laps of Sunday’s race from Kentucky to finish 17th in the Acronis Ford.
· Buescher finished 20th in the Fifth Third Ford in Sunday’s 400-mile race at Kentucky.
· Oscar Mayer is back on board Newman’s Ford Mustang for the star-studded event Wednesday, with a bright and colorful scheme featuring its high quality bacon.
· Fastenal returns to Buescher’s machine as he tries to race his way into the main event.
All-Star Victories
Roush Fenway has earned four victories in NASCAR’s All-Star Main Event with drivers Mark Martin, Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards. Martin, who is a two-time All-Star race winner, first went to Victory Lane in 1998 for Roush Fenway before taking the checkered flag again in 2005. Kenseth earned the victory in the 2004 running of the event and Edwards visited the winner’s circle in 2011.
Racing in to the Show
Overall Roush Fenway has four victories in The Open – the preliminary qualifying races prior to the main event – two by Greg Biffle and one each by Jeff Burton and Trevor Bayne. Burton earned the win in the 2003 running of the Open after starting 18th. Biffle won his qualifying race in 2015 to earn a spot in the event, and the following year he and teammate Trevor Bayne swept the qualifying races to put their name in the hat for a shot at the $1 million payout.
Starting Lineup Set for Wednesday’s Action
Based off a random draw for all 16 locked in positions for Wednesday’s main event, Ryan Newman will start 11th. The lineup for the All-Star Open was determined by a random draw within the top-12 drivers in owners points, with Buescher drawing the eighth spot.
Roush Fenway All-Star Wins
1998 Martin
2004 Kenseth
2005 Martin
2011 Edward
