After one year away, the NASCAR All-Star Race will be returning to North Wilkesboro Speedway in 2027, the track announced on Wednesday. The event was held at North Wilkesboro from 2023 to 2025 before moving to Dover Motor Speedway for 2026.
From May 21 to 23, 2027, North Wilkesboro Speedway will host its first ever tripleheader NASCAR race weekend. There will be points races for the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and Craftsman Truck Series, followed by the Cup Series’ most prestigious exhibition event. This weekend will commemorate the 35th anniversary of “One Hot Night”, the first ever nighttime NASCAR All-Star Race in 1992.
This year was the first time since 1996 that North Wilkesboro hosted a points-paying NASCAR Cup Series race. The 0.625-mile short track was once a mainstay on the Cup Series schedule before being abandoned and later revived by a team led by Marcus Smith and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
“Four years ago, on the steps of the North Carolina Museum of History in Raleigh, we announced what many believed was impossible—that NASCAR was returning to North Wilkesboro Speedway,” said NASCAR Chief Operating Officer Ben Kennedy. “Today, seeing this iconic venue host a historic NASCAR tripleheader weekend is a testament to just how extraordinary that revival has been.
Alongside the announcement of North Wilkesboro’s All-Star Race date, Dover Motor Speedway announced Wednesday that it will once again have a 400-mile regular season race. Their weekend is scheduled for May 15-16, 2027.
Restoring North Wilkesboro Speedway
A commitment to restoring a major piece of NASCAR’s heritage allowed a new generation of fans to experience one of North Carolina’s most iconic paved race tracks after it was all but gone for good. COVID-19 relief funds provided the means to revive North Wilkesboro in May 2021.
“North Wilkesboro has once again become a place where NASCAR’s rich history, current momentum and exciting future come together,” Ben Kennedy continued. “We’re incredibly proud of what this weekend represents—not only for this legendary track, but also for the community that helped bring it back and for the continued growth of our sport.”
All-Star Race History
The NASCAR All-Star Race was once locked in place at Charlotte Motor Speedway beginning with its inaugural running in 1985. Aside from one year at Atlanta Motor Speedway in 1986, the mid-summer exhibition classic stayed in Charlotte until 2020. That year it moved to Bristol Motor Speedway for the first time.
In 2021 and 2022 the All-Star Race moved to Texas Motor Speedway. From there it made its way to North Wilkesboro Speedway for a three-year stint. In 2026, Dover Motor Speedway surprised many by taking on the All-Star Race in lieu of a points-paying race weekend.
The three years of All-Star racing at North Wilkesboro yielded three different winners: Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, and Christopher Bell. When the race joined the regular season schedule, Logano scored a 2026 victory in the North Wilkesboro points race, his first win of the season.
“I’ve always considered All-Star the race of innovation,” Marcus Smith added. “It’s such a unique opportunity for the race teams, NASCAR and the speedway to be bold, take some chances, have fun and just see what happens.”
