NASCAR Cup Series

“Today is an exciting day,” he began,”one that not a lot of folks would have thought possible that night in February down in the hospital in Daytona. Thanks to the good Lord, a tremendous medical team both in Daytona and of course Dr. Anderson here in Charlotte, the incredible support of my wife Samantha, my family and friends, everyone in the NASCAR community, and the many fans.

In 1995, Gordon won all three segments en route to his first victory in the All-Star Race. Two years later, he drove the infamous “T-Rex” car to the race win, and in 2001 Gordon secured his third victory in the non-points event.

1. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson’s gamble in the pits paid off and he captured his second win of the year, winning the Spongebob Squarepants 400 at Kansas. “We stayed out to win it,” Johnson said. “It’s too bad no one stayed up to see it.

Two weekends of racing kicks off with the second specialty race of the season, the All- Star Race. Clint Bowyer will attempt to race his way into the field Friday night in the Sprint Showdown. (One other driver will advance through a special fan vote.) He did it last year, winning the race and advancing to Saturday’s main event where he finished seventh, his best finish in the event.

Richard Childress Racing has won four NASCAR Sprint All-Star Races, most recently in 2007 with Kevin Harvick. Dale Earnhardt won the event in 1987, which included the legendary "Pass in the Grass." Earnhardt also went on to claim the checkered flag in 1990 and 1993.

No. 55 Aaron’s Dream Machine driver David Ragan knows there are two ways to advance from Friday night’s Sprint Showdown into Saturday night’s $1 million NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. He needs to win one of the two 20-lap Showdown segments or win the Sprint Fan Vote, announced after the Showdown.

This week the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series takes some time off from trying to clinch a spot in The Chase and collecting points to compete in the yearly Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Ford has won the event 10 times by eight different drivers. Here’s a closer look.

This weekend is a big weekend for Sam Hornish Jr. for more reasons than one. Not only is Hornish hoping to race his way into the Sprint All-Star race through the Sprint Showdown on Friday night, but through SHOP.COM, Hornish's fans have the opportunity to send up to 10 campers to Victory Junction.

Aric Almirola will compete in his first Sprint All-Star Race. The No. 43 Smithfield team secured a spot in the exhibition race with their win at the Coke Zero 400 last season at Daytona International Speedway.

Michael Waltrip Racing will hold its annual Fan Fest at its Cornelius, N.C. race shop on Wed. May 20, 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. Fans may tour the shop, get autographs from MWR drivers, shop in the team store, watch live pit practice, enjoy sponsor displays and check out muscle cars provided by RK Motors.