Live lineup updates, results from 2023 All-Star Race weekend

For the first time since 1996, it’s NASCAR race weekend at North Wilkesboro Speedway.

The NASCAR All-Star Race is back in the state of North Carolina and shifts to the 0.625-mile oval in Wilkes County at the historic short track, which welcomes back the Cup Series and its modern-day stars on Sunday night (8 ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

With the All-Star Race comes unique changes to the weekend format, at the forefront of which are a Pit Crew Challenge and heat races. The main goal, however, remains a simple, easy-to-follow setup that’s bound to excite throughout this special weekend.

RELATED: Best photos from All-Star weekend

Here’s how it works:

– Lineups for the two heat races and the All-Star Open were determined by Friday’s Pit Crew Challenge, which featured each team performing a four-tire pit stop. The winning No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing team of driver Ty Gibbs started Sunday’s All-Star Open from the pole position.

– The 21 teams locked into the All-Star Race were split into two heat races on Saturday night. Those who finished first, third, fifth and so on in the Pit Crew Challenge competed in the first heat race; those who finished second, fourth, sixth and so on competed in the second heat.

– The two 60-lap heats helped determine the starting positions in Sunday night’s $1 million main event. The results of the first heat set the inside row — first, third, fifth and so on — for the starting grid of the All-Star Race, while Heat 2 set the outside, even-numbered positions.

– The 16 drivers not yet locked into the main event fought through the 100-lap All-Star Open event to earn one of two transfer positions into the All-Star Race. The top two finishers advance to the All-Star Race. In addition, the Fan Vote winner also bumps from the Open into the All-Star Race. The award is granted to the driver with the most votes who did not already advance via the transfer positions.

Heat Race No. 1: Results

A switch to wet-weather tires before the race didn’t sway the field from attempting to put on their best during the 60-lap sprint to the finish. After Chase Elliott initially rose atop the field, Daniel Suárez vaulted ahead of the No. 9 Chevrolet on Lap 27 and held strong to hold off a resurgent Joey Logano to win the opening heat.

“I think we had more grip with the wets than we did with the drys,” Suárez said of the tire choice for his heat. “These tires, for some reason, they had so much forward drive … I feel like our car was pretty damn good.”

Heat Race No. 2: Results

A perfect game might mainly refer to baseball or bowling, but in the case of the second heat race, it also applied as Buescher swept all 60 laps en route to the win. Contact with the wall bumped Kyle Larson back to an eighth-place finish.

“I liked our Fastenal Mustang on slicks — I was really happy with it,” Buescher said. “I didn’t want to put ‘rains’ on. I felt like it was still pretty dry out there. I guess it was starting to drizzle a little.”

All-Star Open: Results

Acting as a sub-in for an out-of-action Alex Bowman didn’t dissuade Josh Berry from capitalizing on contact between Ty Gibbs and Michael McDowell to seize the lead and hold it en route to winning the top Open spot for the All-Star Race. A rebound from Gibbs helped the No. 54 Toyota collect the final Open position. Gragson’s win in the Fan Vote, meanwhile, cemented the final berth.

FULL STARTING LINEUP FOR ALL-STAR RACE (Sunday, 8 p.m. ET, FS1)

Contributing: Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service