SHANE van Gisbergen is set to line up for his maiden NASCAR All-Star race from 18th position, following an action-packed qualifying session at Dover Motor Speedway.

The format called for flying laps to be interrupted by a compulsory four-tyre pit stop, forming the annual pit crew challenge.

The SafetyCulture Chevrolet was the 21st car to hit the track in qualifying, with the Trackhouse Racing crew posting the second fastest time in the competition component.

Elsewhere, Daniel Suárez pounded the wall when a tyre came adrift, Ricky Stenhouse Jr spun without hitting anything, while Connor Zilisch spun coming to pit road and Chris Buescher spun exiting pit road.

Chase Elliot suffered multiple dramas on his pit stop, ditto Ryan Blaney, in a continuation of that squad’s over-the-wall woes, while John Hunter Nemechek and Carson Hocevar had issues on their service.

Zane Smith sped in the pits, the same as Kyle Larson.

All told, 12 drivers encountered issues.

The pole position was won by Denny Hamlin, who overcame his own problem – he spun on the warm-up lap.

While the main race carries a $1 million payday, Smith’s team won the pit stop competition portion of qualifying, taking home $100,000.

Yesterday, in an extended practice session, van Gisbergen was the 28th-fastest.

Tomorrow’s race is set for a 3am AEST start.

This weekend represents the first time the All-Star weekend has been hosted at the Monster Mile at Dover, and to mark the occasion, NASCAR has implemented an interesting format.

Firstly, gone is the All-Star Open race, with all 36 full-season drivers set to face the opening green flag of the 350-lap race.

While the qualifying runs will set the field for the initial race start, the second 75-lap stage line-up will invert the top 26 finishers from the first.

Average finishing positions will determine the order for the final 200-lap stage, which will feature a further competition break after 75 laps.

Drivers eligible for the final segment include those who have won a points event in either 2025 or 2026, former NASCAR All-Star Race winners who compete full-time, and former NASCAR Cup Series champions who compete full-time.

The remaining positions will be filled based on the combined results of segments one and two until the field reaches 25 drivers.

The 26th and final position will be awarded to the NASCAR All-Star Fan Vote winner.

Van Gisbergen had one previous Cup Series start at Dover last year; however, his race unravelled with a flat tyre off the start, which mired him at 30th on the result sheet.

In the one O’Reilly Series he has had at the venue in 2024, he finished 18th.

Last year at the All-Star Open in North Wilkesboro, van Gisbergen qualified on pole position and led the opening 54 laps before finally finishing 13th and failing to advance to the main event.

With Dover hosting the All-Star event, North Wilkesboro has been elevated to a full points-paying race for 2026.

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