Nemechek excited for All-Star race

Fun. Practice. Competition. Prestige. Money. That pretty much sums up how U.S. Army driver Joe Nemechek feels about Saturday night's NASCAR Nextel All-Star Challenge race here at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

Nemechek, who qualified for the $4 million event by winning the Kansas Nextel Cup race last October, will be making his sixth appearance in the All-Star Challenge. His previous five appearances were in 1994, 2000, 2002, 2003 and 2004. His best finish was fourth in 2003.

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"This is a nothing-to-lose and go-for-broke event," said Nemechek. "It's a fun weekend and there's a pot of gold waiting for the winner."

The winner's take in the fan-friendly format of racing is again expected to exceed $1 million. Last year's All-Star champ -- Matt Kenseth -- collected $1,044,000.

"When you're staring at a million dollars and the prestige of being a Nextel All-Star winner, you don't hold back," said Nemechek. "We'll be racing just as hard as if it were a points race. When we get to that last segment -- it will be a no-holds-barred shootout. The fans will be in for a treat."

The format will again consist of three segments 40, 30 and 20 laps at the 1.5-mile oval.

While Nemechek will go all out for the All-Star win, his 01 Army Chevrolet team will also take advantage of the extra time at the Lowe's track in preparation for next week's Coca-Cola 600.

"These are two prestigious races," said Nemechek. "The first objective for this weekend is to win the All-Star race. The second is to fully utilize our time on the track as a means of testing for next week's race. It would be foolish and negligent not to take advantage of the situation."

Qualifying for the NASCAR NEXTEL All-Star Challenge will take place Friday evening and consist of three laps with a mandatory four-tire pit stop. The total elapsed time of the pit stop and laps will make up each team's qualifying effort.