NASCAR All-Star prize money: How much will the winning driver make for 2022 race?

David Suggs

NASCAR All-Star prize money: How much will the winning driver make for 2022 race? image

Much of NASCAR's finances are shrouded in mystery. That's not the case for the All-Star Race.

The event's cash prize is the biggest incentive for the competition. It'll be the thing drivers are vying for when they travel to Texas Motor Speedway to take part in this year's iteration of the race.

Well, that and bragging rights.

Sporting News has you covered on how much a winning driver makes for winning the All-Star Race, as well as a list of past winners of the competition.

How much money does a driver get for winning the All-Star Race?

Prize money: $1 million

The winner of NASCAR's All-Star Race gets a cash prize of $1 million. Racer's teams also take part in a pit stop challenge, which can net them $100,000.

It was a prize first introduced in the 2003 All-Star Race, which was the last one sponsored by Winston.

In '03, that cash prize was quite significant. Jimmie Johnson, the winner of the 2003 All-Star Race, won over $7.7 million that season, the second-highest earnings of that year's Cup Series earnings behind champion Matt Kenseth.

That $1 million earned during the All-Star race constituted about 13 percent of Johnson's total earnings in 2003.

Fast forward to today, and the race has dwindled in popularity. The cash prize is more of a footnote than anything else in the present day, as it pales in comparison to the race winnings drivers earn over the course of the season.

In 2015 (the last year NASCAR made team earning available), Kevin Harvick made a series-leading $11.7 million. Yet the All-Star race prize remained the same. Hmm.

All-star race winners are technically losing money year-on-year. Allow me to explain.

The cash prize offered to racers has been fixed at $1 million since 2003. However, Jimmie Johnson's 2003 All-Star race winnings would actually be worth $1.57 million in today's market, according to Yahoo Sports' Nick Bromberg.

The value of the American has depreciated over time. Yet the actual cash figure remains the same. So, racers are unable to stretch that $1 million as much as they could in 2003.

It seems NASCAR's executives don't have a great grasp of economics. 

And the lack of interest in the contest has been apparent to many. This is one of a dozen or so different formats that have been used to drum up interest in the All-Star race. That's the sign of a dying fanbase.

Perhaps NASCAR should make a change to the cash prize they offer rather than the way the race is run. Give drivers and their teams bigger payouts for winning the competition. Or, as Bromberg suggested in a 2017 article, simultaneously offer a $1 million cash prize to fans as well.

List of All-Star Race past winners 

Year Car Winner Owner Model
1985 11 Darrell Waltrip Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet
1986 9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford
1987 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
1988 11 Terry Labonte Junior Johnson & Associates (2) Chevrolet
1989 27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac
1990 3 Dale Earnhardt (2) Richard Childress Racing (2) Chevrolet
1991 28 Davey Allison Robert Yates Racing Ford
1992 28 Davey Allison (2) Robert Yates Racing (2) Ford
1993 3 Dale Earnhardt (3) Richard Childress Racing (3) Chevrolet
1994 7 Geoffrey Bodine Geoff Bodine Racing Ford
1995 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
1996 21 Michael Waltrip Wood Brothers Racing Ford
1997 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports (2) Chevrolet
1998 6 Mark Martin

Roush Fenway Racing

Ford
1999 5 Terry Labonte (2) Hendrick Motorsports (3) Chevrolet
2000 8 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Dale Earnhardt Inc. Chevrolet
2001 24 Jeff Gordon (3) Hendrick Motorsports (4) Chevrolet
2002 12 Ryan Newman Penske Racing Ford
2003 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports (5) Chevrolet
2004 17 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing (2) Ford
2005 6 Mark Martin (2) Roush Fenway Racing (3) Ford
2006 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports (6) Chevrolet
2007 29 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Racing (4) Chevrolet
2008 9 Kasey Kahne Gillett Evernham Motorsports Dodge
2009 14 Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet
2010 2 Kurt Busch Penske Racing (2) Dodge
2011 99 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing (4) Ford
2012 48 Jimmie Johnson (3) Hendrick Motorsports (7) Chevrolet
2013 48 Jimmie Johnson (4) Hendrick Motorsports (8) Chevrolet
2014 1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing (1) Chevrolet
2015 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
2016 22 Joey Logano Team Penske (3) Ford
2017 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing (2) Toyota
2018 4 Kevin Harvick (2) Stewart-Haas Racing (2) Ford
2019 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing (2) Chevrolet
2020 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports (9) Chevrolet
2021 5 Kyle Larson (2) Hendrick Motorsports (10) Chevrolet

David Suggs

David Suggs Photo

David Suggs is a content producer at The Sporting News. A long-suffering Everton, Wizards and Commanders fan, he has learned to get used to losing over the years. In his free time, he enjoys skateboarding (poorly), listening to the likes of Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and D’Angelo, and penning short journal entries.