The NASCAR All-Stars: Part 2

Continuing an overview of the drivers qualified to race in the NASCAR Sprint All Star Race, Saturday, May 17, 2008.

Driver: Kurt Busch
How did he get in? 2004 NASCAR Cup Champion, plus he had two wins last year, at Pocono and Michigan.
All Star Race History: Kurt Busch ran his first All Star Race in 2002, where he finished in fourth place. He has raced in every All Star Race since then, and his best finish was the one in 2002. Last year, he and his brother Kyle wrecked each other on lap 62.

Driver: Kyle Busch
How did he get in? He won one race in 2007, at Bristol, and three in 2008, at Atlanta, Talladega, and Darlington.
All Star Race History: His first All Star race was in 2006, and he crashed on lap 48, along with Mark Martin, Kasey Kahne, Jeremy Mayfield, and Jamie McMurray. Last year he was involved in a wreck with his brother, Kurt, and has yet to finish an All Star race.

Driver: Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
How did he get in? Past All Star Winner(The Winston, 2000)
All Star Race History: Jr won his first Cup race in 2000, his rookie year at Texas Motor Speedway, which made him eligable for the All Star Race. This was truly "The Battle of the Dales," as Dale Earnhardt, Dale Earnhardt Jr, and Dale Jarrett raced each other for the lead during the last ten laps of the race. Dale Jarrett lead the race for eight laps, then, with two laps to go, Dale Earnhardt, Jr took the lead. He beat Jarrett by 1.29 seconds. This was also one of the fastest races in the history of The Winston, with no cautions, although a retaliatory move by Joe Nemecheck on Steve Park, with eight laps to go, caused a four car accident, including Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Steve Park, and Joe Nemecheck. Jr's worst finish was in 2003, when he finished seventeenth.

Driver: Carl Edwards
How did he get in? He won three races in 2007, at Michigan, Bristol, and Dover, and three races this year at Las Vegas, California, and Texas.
All Star Race History: He missed the All Star Race last year because his wins did not come until after the date of the race. His first All Star race was in 2005, where he crashed by himself on lap 57, and his best finish was fourth in 2006

Driver: Jeff Gordon
How did he get in? He has won two of his four NASCAR Cup championships within the last ten years, won six races in 2007, and is a past winner of the All Star race.
All Star Race History: His first All Star Race was The Winston in 1994, where he finished fourteenth. The next year, he won the race, and continued winning it in 1996 and 1997. His last All Star win was in 2001, after the race was red flagged for a huge crash on lap one, because of rain. The drivers were allowed to go to back up cars, and the race was restarted from the beginning. Gordon beat Dale Jarrett by .701 seconds, in another caution free race that lasted only 34 minutes. Gordon has never missed an All Star race since 1994, and his worst finish was in 2000, when he finished sixteenth after crashing on lap sixty-two.

Driver: Denny Hamlin
How did he get in? Won both Pocono races last year and at Martinsville this year.
All Star Race History: 2007 was his first All Star Race, and he and Casey Mears got tangled on lap 63, ending his race in the seventeenth position.

Driver: Kevin Harvick
How did he get in? Past All Star Race winner, and winner of the Daytona 500 in 2007.
All Star Race History: His first All Star race was The Winston in 2001, where he finished twenty-first, due to brake failure. He has not missed an All Star race since then. He won the Nextel All-Star Challenge last year, barely edging Jimmie Johnson by .141 seconds.

Records from Racing Reference.info