Drivers Want NASCAR To Increase The $1 Million Prize For Winning The All-Star Race: “Doesn’t Move The Needle Very Much For Me”

A million dollars for a few hours of driving? Sounds pretty good to me…

But for NASCAR’s top drivers, the prize for winning the annual All-Star Race doesn’t really provide much motivation for them to go out there and put on a show these days.

Tonight is the NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Race, which for the third year in a row will be held at North Wilkesboro Speedway, in the sport’s backyard of North Carolina. The race will feature all of the race winners from the past year (including winners in 2025), as well as the winner and second-place finisher in the All-Star Open, plus one spot reserved for the winner of a fan vote.

And unlike most NASCAR races, there are no points on the line: Just bragging rights, and a million dollar prize.

The event is designed to produce an all-or-nothing type of race. Finishing second doesn’t mean anything, so drivers are incentivized to fight as hard as they can for the checkered flag.

Or are they?

Since 2003, the race has paid $1 million to the winner. That’s over 20 years without an increase in the payout – and drivers say that it doesn’t offer as much incentive to go all out, potentially make season-long enemies and tear up their race cars, as it did back in the day.

According to Denny Hamlin, the $1 million prize isn’t much motivation to him and “doesn’t move the needle” very much:

“It’s paid $1 million to win for 30 years… It’s not that cool anymore.”

He did, however, say there’s a dollar amount that would help motivate him:

“A dollar is now $3 today, 30 years ago. So probably three million.”

And Ryan Blaney agreed, saying that it was situational for him what he would do for the million dollar prize but that he wouldn’t “send a guy to the hospital” and wreck them for $1 million.

Even Dale Earnhardt Jr. has been critical of the All-Star Race prize, agreeing with Hamlin that the race should pay $3 million to the winner:

“He’s already mad about the damn purse being $1 million for 30 years… I think that the race should pay $3 million to the winner.”

But at least for some drivers, even a million is enough to motivate them to give it their all. Joey Logano said he doesn’t have any problem with the prize money:

“I don’t want this to sound bad. I’ve raced for championships, but I race for money. What’s wrong with that? It’s a big piece of it.

We’re incentivized to go out there and win, and I don’t see what’s wrong with that. So this race presents that opportunity.”

Of course the All-Star Race has produced some incredible moments over the years, like Dale Earnhardt’s famous “Pass in the Grass” back in 1987.

And even though there’s only a million dollars and no points on the line, the race still produces some fireworks like we saw last year when Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Kyle Busch got into a brawl in the garage area after an incident on the track.

The All-Star Race is a fun exhibition for NASCAR, but it seems like if the sport really wants to take the event to the next level and ensure that drivers are putting on the best show possible, increasing the prize – and the incentive for drivers to go all out – is an easy way to do that.