Logano wins All-Star, from Pole to Payout
For the second year in a row, All-Star Race weekend at North Wilkesboro was marred by rain. Last year, the race had to start on wet weather tires before the track dried out enough to run on primaries. This year, Mother Nature took the rain to the next level and unleashed a downpour that created a virtual swimming pool on pit road and caused a bevy of tires to float away. As a result, qualifying and heat races were cancelled. Miraculously, the sun was shining again by Sunday, and after cleaning up the mess and uncovering the cars, The Open proceeded as planned at 5:30. The 100-lap event transferred winner Ty Gibbs and second-place finisher Bubba Wallace into the main event. The Fan Vote subsequently transferred Noah Gragson into the million-dollar event as well.
And then, pole winner Joey Logano dominated, leading all but one of 200 laps to win his second All-Star Race. Logano also set a record for the most laps led by any driver in the history of the event.
Denny Hamlin finished second, admitting in his post-race interview that he just couldn’t seize the lead and needed to be faster to get around Logano. RFK driver Chris Buescher ended up taking third.
Kyle Larson, who arrived with approximately an hour to spare after qualifying fifth for the Indianapolis 500 and flying to North Wilkesboro, finished fourth, despite starting from the back of the field. Given his jam-packed schedule while running both series this weekend and next, Larson was undoubtedly the driver in the spotlight.
Lap 2 delivered some quick and unexpected drama when 2023 Daytona winner Ricky Stenhouse shot the middle between Michael McDowell on the bottom and Kyle Busch on the top, creating a 3-wide scenario in Turn 2 that culminated with Busch brushing the wall. Despite that Busch didn’t wreck, he was clearly overcome with anger and turned Stenhouse only half a lap later. As the #47 slid sideways, Busch’s bumper caught the car again and spun it against the wall, effectively ending Stenhouse’s night.
The incident seemingly marked the end of any truly memorable on-track action because the newly paved track and the option of soft tires didn’t create the kind of passing opportunities that NASCAR had hoped for, and they didn’t elevate the short track experience. Once again, like most short tracks this year, the cars were strung out, passes took multiple laps to complete, and clean air was king. And once Logano had it, he retained the lead throughout the 200-lap exhibition race, from pole to payout.
It was a great day for Team Penske, considering Logano’s million dollar win came only hours after the organization’s Indy drivers swept the top 3 starting spots for the Indianapolis 500 next weekend. However, as Logano celebrated the moment with his team and 6-year-old son, Hudson, drama ensued near the haulers when Stenhouse confronted Kyle Busch. Despite having two hours to calm down after the on-track incident, Stenhouse was still hot under the collar and resorted to throwing a punch when he disagreed with Busch’s version of what had happened on Lap 2. His actions caused crew members on both sides to get involved, and though Stenhouse was quickly dragged away, his father lunged for Busch and escalated the melee. NASCAR issued a statement saying that any penalties resulting from the drama will be announced on Tuesday.
