NASCAR Cup Series

NASCAR SPRINT SHOWDOWN – Earnhardt Nation can breathe a sigh of relief. It may have just been a qualifying event for a non-points race, but Dale Earnhardt Jr. has won a race. And he won it in commanding fashion, leading all 40 laps of Saturday’s Sprint Showdown to transfer to the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race.

A.J. Allmendinger (No. 22 Pennzoil Dodge Charger R/T) Finished 2nd “I can’t believe the luck of this race team (smiles). A flat tire before we come to green, I mean, we’ve got to do something to change our luck up, that’s unbelievable."

CMA Male Vocalist of the Year, Blake Shelton may have started the party at Charlotte Motor Speedway with his recent remake of ‘Footloose,’ but the drivers were ready to do a little dancing of their own on Saturday night, showing off some unique, door-to-door dance moves.

The winner of the 2012 Pennzoil Burnout Competition was Clint Bowyer, earning $10,000 for the Employee Community Foundation in his hometown of Emporia, Kansas. “It’s the Employee Community Foundation."

Sprint announced this evening that Bobby Labonte, driver of the No. 47 Kingsford Toyota, has won the 2012 Sprint Fan Vote and is now in the field for the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race taking place at Charlotte Motor Speedway tonight.

ARIC ALMIROLA – No. 43 Smithfield Ford Fusion – “We were just too tight. It was a good effort by everybody on our Smithfield Ford, but that restart didn’t help us much. Burton’s car wasn’t as good that second stint and I kept getting hung on the bottom of him."

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series defending champion Tony Stewart is an avid outdoorsman who loves to hunt and fish. Saturday at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Bass Pro Shops founder Johnny Morris and National Wild Turkey Federation CEO George Thornton recognized his commitment to the outdoors with a seven-foot-tall brass-and-wood statue. Stewart will pilot a special National Wild Turkey Foundation paint scheme in tonight’s NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race.

New to the Charlotte Motor Speedway menu for 2012, Levy Restaurants, the speedway's food partner, is serving up deep-fried cupcakes, among other things.

BURNOUTS – Kasey Kahne, Joey Logano, AJ Allmendinger, Brad Keselowski and Clint Bowyer will compete in this evening’s Pennzoil Victory Burnout Challenge at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

The stars have come home to Charlotte for this weekend's NASCAR Sprint All Star Race, and this year brings new drivers, a new format, but the same old distinction. A million dollars rides on the driver able to cross the finish line first following 90 or so laps at The Beast of the Southeast.