Well, what a start to the season. We are 11 races into the 2015 season already. Wow. And, we made it to the All-Star race. So far this season we have had a total of eight winners. Pretty good. That leaves eight Chase positions still available. But, the All-Star race is a non-points event, so drivers can relax for a weekend and not worry about struggling to make the Chase.

The All-Star race is a complicated sequence of multiple segments of racing. Several drivers are already virtually guaranteed a spot in this race, but there are three positions yet to be filled. Two will be decided in the Sprint Showdown. It consists of two twenty lap segments. If you win a segment you make the race. The last position is filled by the fan vote. Fans can vote for their favorite non-secure driver. As always happens with voting, the driver with the most votes wins.

The Sprint Showdown is on Friday night. The All-Star race is on Saturday night. The race begins with four twenty-five lap segments. All laps, including caution laps, are counted in the first four segments. Pitting for tires and fuel is optional between segments 1, 2, and 3. After segment four all drivers must make a mandatory four-tire pit stop. The order onto pit road is determined by a drivers average finish throughout the first four segments. Then comes the ten lap dash for the cash. Only green-flag laps count, and winner takes home a million dollars.

Last year Jamie McMurray used consistency to forge his way to the front, and he out-ran the dominate Kevin Harvick for the win. Harvick has lost several races recently do to minor problems. If he can just not have these kinds of problems he will be in a good position to claim that million bucks.

However, there are several good drivers in the field. Kurt Busch, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. are all hungry for the bonus million. And all four have been fast over the past several races in the regular season. And of course, McMurray is as good as if not better than he was last year. He could repeat. And Gordon would love to win the All-Star race in his last full-time year.

There is one factor that hasn’t been here all year. Kyle Busch. Kyle suffered two leg injuries earlier this year, and he missed the first eleven races of the year. The last driver to return from a leg injury struggled to find speed again. Will Kyle have similar problems? Only time will tell. He is Chase eligible, and there would be no better way to announce his return than to win his first All-Star race.

My pick to win is Harvick. Still, Kurt Busch and the Hendrick trio may have a thing or two to say about that. All five of these teams have had amazing speed as of late, and all five would love to claim an All-Star win.