Yes, Denny Hamlin won the All-Star Race at Dover Motor Speedway. That doesn't mean that he wants to see the exhibition event return to the 1-mile track in 2027.
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He would actually prefer the opposite so that Dover can once again hold a points-paying race. He loves the challenge it provides, and he knows that it doesn't provide something that makes All-Star Races stand out on the schedule.
"I don't know if it's just me, but I feel like an All-Star Race should be at night," Hamlin said after winning the $1 million prize for the second time in his career. "I don't even care where it is. Night was always something that was always...
"I'm not trying to throw mud. They did as good as they possibly could given where they put this track in the schedule and whatnot. But at night somewhere..."
The All-Star Race has been on the NASCAR schedule since 1985. It has primarily taken place at tracks with lights. The first event took place at Charlotte Motor Speedway and then it moved to Atlanta Motor Speedway in 1986.
The exhibition race returned to Charlotte in 1987, where it remained through 2019. The top drivers in the Cup Series raced under the lights at NASCAR's home track while putting on a show and battling for money instead of points.
NASCAR moved this event to Bristol Motor Speedway in 2020, but still held it under the lights at the short track. The event also featured underglow representing the different manufacturers.
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The All-Star Race then went to Texas Motor Speedway in 2021 and 2022 before going to North Wilkesboro Speedway for 2023, 2024, and 2025.
The 2026 season marked the first time that Dover Motor Speedway hosted the exhibition event, one that lasted approximately four hours as NASCAR combined the Open and main event into one 350-lap event.
Though NASCAR still scored the three segments as three separate races, which only created confusion among the drivers and fans.
"Truthfully, I couldn't tell," Hamlin said. "Did the All-Star Race start at lap zero or did it start at lap 150, the official All-Star Race?"
Format aside, the event actually provided some of the best racing in recent memory. NASCAR applied resin in new areas of the turns, which helped the drivers run higher grooves than before. Adding in extra horsepower increased the challenge for the drivers.
The track preparation, from the perspective of the drivers, made for a good race. Some just expressed the opinion that it would have been far better as a regular-season race affecting the championship battle.
"I definitely prefer Dover as a points race," Hamlin added. "There's no other track like this on our schedule.
"It is so unique, and it requires such a unique style of driving, far different from any oval we go to that you can't lose tracks like this in our points schedule. I just think it's too valuable."
