The 2011 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway is one of the most highly anticipated events on the NASCAR schedule, and it is hard to believe it is already upon us. After 11 races, the teams head home to Charlotte for two weeks of fan events and hard racing.
Will the 2011 Sprint All-Star Race live up the hype? Will Ryan Newman settle things with Juan Pablo Montoya? What about Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch? Who is your choice to get the Sprint Fan Vote?
Stay tuned as we keep you posted throughout the week.
So who is eligible for the 2011 NASCAR Sprint All Star Race? Here is the latest list:
- Jamie McMurray
- Jimmie Johnson
- Kurt Busch
- Denny Hamlin
- Ryan Newman
- Kevin Harvick
- Kyle Busch
- David Reutimann
- Greg Biffle
- Juan Pablo Montoya
- Tony Stewart
- Clint Bowyer
- Carl Edwards
- Trevor Bayne
- Jeff Gordon
- Matt Kenseth
- Regan Smith
- Kasey Kahne (past All Star Race winner)
-
Mark Martin (past All Star Race winner)
In addition to those already eligible for the race, three other drivers will race in Saturday night's main event:
- Sprint Showdown winner
- Sprint Showdown second place finisher
- Sprint Fan Vote winner
As of last count, over 1.5 million votes have been cast in the Sprint Fan Vote. Fans have the opportunity to cast their vote until 5:00 p.m. ET on Saturday. The current top 10 in the Sprint Fan Vote (listed alphabetically) are:
- AJ Allmendinger
- Marcos Ambrose
- Jeff Burton
- Dale Earnhardt Jr.
- Brad Keselowski
- Bobby Labonte
- Joey Logano
- Paul Menard
- David Ragan
- Brian Vickers
Here is what this week's schedule has in store (all times Eastern):
THURSDAY
7:00 p.m. - NASCAR Sprint Pit Crew Challenge presented by Craftsman (Time Warner Cable Arena... TV: SPEED 8:00 p.m.)
FRIDAY
9:00 a.m. - NASCAR Camping World Truck Series practice (1 hour)
10:20 a.m. - NASCAR Camping World Truck Series final practice (1 hour, 30 minutes)
12:00 p.m. - NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sprint Showdown final practice (1 hour, 25 minutes)
1:35 p.m. - NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Spint All-Star Race final practice (2 hours, 35 minutes)
4:00 p.m. - NASCAR Camping World Truck Series qualifying (2 laps)
5:00 p.m. - NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sprint Showdown qualifying (2 laps)
6:00 p.m. - NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sprint All-Star Race qualifying (3 laps with pit stop, with a four-tire change)
8:00 p.m. - NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race (Distance: 134 laps, 201 miles.... TV: SPEED)
SATURDAY
7:30 p.m. - NASCAR Spint Cup Series Sprint Showdown (Distance: 20 laps/20 laps.... TV: SPEED)
9:00 p.m. - NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sprint All-Star Race (Distance: 50 laps/20 laps/20 laps/10 laps)