NASCAR All-Star Race 2026: Denny Hamlin takes checkered flag

USA TODAY

Updated May 17, 2026, 6:21 p.m. ET

Denny Hamlin started from the pole and took the checkered flag at the end to win his second NASCAR All-Star Race championship at Dover Motor Speedway.

There was plenty of drama in between though as NASCAR changed its format and its location for the 2026 edition. Hamlin overtook Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Chase Briscoe with less than 30 laps remaining in the 200-lap finale to claim the $1 million first-place prize.

Dover hosted the All-Star Race for the first time, as the series introduced the new format to challenge drivers and intrigue viewers during an afternoon of racing on the 1-mile concrete oval.

Bubba Wallace won the first 75-lap segment after a couple of nine-car crashes, the second of which forced the race to end under caution. Tyler Reddick took the checkered flag in Segment 2 to set the stage for the final shootout.

USA TODAY Sports followed all the action at Dover Motor Speedway:

Denny Hamlin takes the checkered flag to win the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Race at Dover Motor Speedway.

Denny Hamlin goes back in front on Lap 172

Denny Hamlin was gaining ground steadily on leader Chase Briscoe and he made the move to the front, passing his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate with just under 30 laps to go.

Those two JGR drivers, along with Tyler Reddick, have had the best cars all day long.

Reddick, however, suddenly lost his momentum and began fading badly. Track reports indicate he may have broken a power steering belt.

Joey Logano hits the wall on Lap 139

Just as the leaders were starting to make green-flag pit stops, Joey Logano brought out the caution on Turn 1 when he had his left rear tire give out. He hit the wall hard and his day is complete.

Unfortunately for Carson Hocevar and William Byron, they had already given up their top-5 positions before Logano's crash. The bad luck on timing put those drivers who pitted a lap down.

Chase Briscoe leads.

Connor Zilisch penalized for pit violation

One of the classic underdogs in the All-Star Race, Connor Zilisch was running second as cars began pitting under the yellow on Lap 78.

However, an error by his pit crew may have cost him a shot at the win. Zilisch was penalized for equipment interference when his right front tire that was being changed got away in the pit box as Noah Gregson was pitting. As a result, Zilisch was forced to restart in 21st place.

Denny Hamlin moves back in front

Denny Hamlin takes the lead in the NASCAR All-Star Race at Dover Motor Speedway.

Here comes Denny Hamlin.

With Chase Briscoe and Tyler Reddick fading, Hamlin moved back into the lead just before the mandatory caution flag came out on Lap 75.

Reddick seemed to be losing air and tread on his right front tire as Hamlin gained ground. The caution flag may have been a gift to Reddick, as the Fox Sports broadcast pointed out.

There are 20 cars on the lead lap, with Bubba Wallace gaining the free pass on the caution.

Tyler Reddick overtakes Chase Briscoe on Lap 41

Chase Briscoe passed Denny Hamlin for the lead on the second lap of the All-Star final and held it for 40 more. That is, until lapped traffic came into play.

Coming up on Daniel Suarez's car, Briscoe had trouble getting around him and Tyler Reddick − the winner of Segment 2 − was able to make the move to pass Briscoe.

Denny Hamlin starts on pole for All-Star Race final

Looking for his second All-Star Race title, Denny Hamlin will lead the field in the 200-lap shootout. His combined finishes in the first two race segments gave him the advantage to start up front alongside Chase Briscoe.

The top 10:

(11) Denny Hamlin
(19) Chase Briscoe
(45) Tyler Reddick
(24) William Byron
(88) Connor Zilisch
(2) Austin Cindric
(43) Erik Jones
(22) Joey Logano
(71) Michael McDowell
(48) Alex Bowman

Kyle Larson hasn't been on the track since Lap 2, but he's back in the field for the final after his car underwent extensive repairs. Kyle Busch, Ryan Blaney and Christopher Bell are also back on the track after their earlier wrecks.

Daniel Suarez wins fan vote to get into final

Daniel Suarez, driving in the No. 7 Cal Ripken Sr. Foundation Chevrolet, claimed the final spot in the field for the 200-lap final by winning the fan vote.

"That's very cool, man. I can thank all my amigos for their support, for their love," Suarez told the Fox broadcast crew upon learning about the results. "All my amigos here in the United States, down in Mexico. It's been a little bit of trouble today, but hopefully we can make something good out of it."

Tyler Reddick wins Segment 2

Tyler Reddick moved ahead of A.J. Allmendinger midway through the second segment and held on to the lead the rest of the way.

Reddick led 39 of the 75-laps and won the segment by a comfortable margin over Chase Briscoe and Denny Hamlin.

Because of the sheer number of cars taken out in crashes earlier in the day, eight drivers will likely qualify for the 200-lap final based on their cumulative finishes in the two earlier segments.

Those drivers and their combined finishing positions:

(88) Connor Zilisch - 16
(43) Erik Jones - 21
(48) Alex Bowman - 21
(71) Michael McDowell - 21
(18) Ty Dillon - 28
(4) Noah Gragson - 31
(47) Ricky Stenhouse Jr. - 31
(16) A.J. Allmendinger - 41

More hard contact takes out Ross Chastain

Just six laps into the second segment, three cars guaranteed spots in the finale were involved in a crash in Turn 2.

Ross Chastain, Brad Kezelowski and Bubba Wallace sustained damage and all went to the garage as the yellow came out.

Chastain seemed to get the worst of it as his left front tire was bent askew. He's already been ruled out of the rest of the day.

A.J. Allmendinger has the lead as second segment restarts on Lap 21 of 75.

Tentative starting order for Segment 2

Though several cars remain in the garage to repair damage from the crash that ended Segment 1, the starting lineup for Segment 2 has been set. Whether they'll line up that way when the green flag drops is another thing altogether.

Here are the cars up front at the moment for the start of Segment 2:

(42) John Hunter Nemechek*
(35) Riley Herbst*
(20) Christopher Bell*
(17) Chris Buescher*
(16) A.J. Allmendinger
(38) Zane Smith*
(97) Shane Van Giebergen
(4) Noah Gragson
(21) Josh Berry
(10) Ty Dillon

*-currently in the garage

Major accident ends Segment 1; Bubba Wallace gets win

More trouble in Turn 4 as Riley Herbst wobbled in the middle of a three-wide swarm and drew contact from Alex Bowman.

That triggered the second nine-car crash of the opening segment, and it came just as the segment was coming to a close.

Kyle Busch was among the drivers caught up in the carnage. John Hunter Nemechek and Chase Elliott, who were both involved in the earlier nine-car pileup, also sustained damage in this one. Christopher Bell, Zane Smith and others were involved as well.

Bubba Wallace overtook Denny Hamlin for the lead shortly before the caution came out. He was declared the winner of Segment 1 as the field is inverted for the start of Segment 2.

Another yellow on Lap 62

Tire trouble sent Carson Hocevar into the wall with 13 laps remaining in the opening segment, bringing out the caution flag.

Denny Hamlin is still running in first place under the yellow heading into the restart.

NASCAR reporter saved by crew member

Quick thinking by NASCAR pit crew member Donovan Williams helped keep Fox Sports reporter Amanda Busick from being seriously injured during Saturday's Truck Series race at Dover Motor Speedway.

Williams, who was treated and released from the infield care center, put his body in harm's way when a runaway pit box started picking up speed on its way toward pit road.

Caution comes out on Lap 2

It didn't take long for trouble to raise its head.

With the cars running three-wide off Turn 4, Ryan Preece seemed to clip Kyle Larson and careen into the wall. Preece's car then burst into flames as he safely climbed out his window netting.

"It was my fault. I'm sorry," Preece told Fox Sports' Jamie Little after he came out of the infield care center.

In all, nine cars were involved in the wreck. In addition to Preece and Larson, Ryan Blaney, Daniel Suarez, Chase Elliott, Cole Custer, John Hunter Nemechek and Michael McDowell also sustained damage to their cars.

Larson, Elliott and Blaney are already locked into the 200-lap third stage, so they can come back out for that if they're able to get their cars repaired.

Ryan Preece has his No. 60 Ford burst into flames as he's involved in an accident involving Todd Gilliland, Daniel Suarez and Cole Custer during the opening segment of the NASCAR All-Star Race at Dover Motor Speedway.

Green flag drops at Dover

Denny Hamlin in the No. 11 Toyota leads the field at the Monster Mile as the 2026 All-Star Race is underway.

Three bronze star medal recipients from the nearby Dover Air Force Base gave the command for drivers to start their engines and Fox Sports' Mike Joy had the honor of waving the green flag.

Honorary Starter Mike Joy poses with the green flag in the flagstand prior to the NASCAR All-Star Race at Dover Motor Speedway.

Temperatures are in the high 80s in Delaware so the drivers will have to combat the heat coming off the concrete as they navigate around the track.

What time does the NASCAR All-Star Race start?

The 2026 NASCAR All-Star Race starts at 1 p.m. ET at Dover Motor Speedway in Dover, Delaware.

What TV channel is the NASCAR All-Star Race on?

FS1 is broadcasting the 2026 NASCAR All-Star Race and has a pre-race show beginning at 12 p.m. ET.

Is there live stream of the NASCAR All-Star Race?

The 2026 NASCAR All-Star Race can be live-streamed on the Fox Sports website (by signing in with your TV or satellite provider), Fox One (free seven day trial) and the Fox Sports app. Viewers can also stream the race on HBO Max and Fubo.

Stream the NASCAR All-Star Race on Fubo

How many laps is the NASCAR All-Star Race?

The 2026 NASCAR All-Star Race features two 75-lap shootouts followed by a 200-lap race on the 1-mile oval at Dover Motor Speedway. The driver who wins the final 200-lap event takes home $1 million.

Fans gather around the Miles the Monster Monument at Dover Motor Speedway before a NASCAR race on July 20, 2025.

What is the lineup for the 2026 NASCAR All-Star Race?

Starting lineup for first segment only (Car number in parentheses)

(11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota
(6) Brad Keselowski, Ford
(43) Erik Jones, Toyota
(1) Ross Chastain, Chevrolet
(24) William Byron, Chevrolet
(20) Christopher Bell, Toyota
(23) Bubba Wallace, Toyota
(22) Joey Logano, Ford
(54) Ty Gibbs, Toyota
(2) Austin Cindric, Ford
(8) Kyle Busch, Chevrolet
(48) Alex Bowman, Chevrolet
(4) Noah Gragson, Ford
(45) Tyler Reddick, Toyota
(10) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet
(19) Chase Briscoe, Toyota
(3) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet
(97) Shane Van Gisbergen, Chevrolet
(21) Josh Berry, Ford
(34) Todd Gilliland, Ford
(35) Riley Herbst, Toyota
(41) Cole Custer, Chevrolet
(51) Cody Ware, Chevrolet
(77) Carson Hocevar, Chevrolet
(38) Zane Smith, Ford
(60) Ryan Preece, Ford
(88) Connor Zilisch, Chevrolet
(12) Ryan Blaney, Ford
(5) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet
(71) Michael McDowell, Chevrolet
(9) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet
(17) Chris Buescher, Ford
(7) Daniel Suarez, Chevrolet
(47) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Chevrolet
(42) John Hunter Nemechek, Toyota
(16) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet

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