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Kevin Harvick advocates rotating All-Star Race and putting the showcase up for bid

NASCAR Nextel All-Star Challenge

CONCORD, NC - MAY 19: Kevin Harvick, driver of the #29 Pennzoil Platinum/Shell Chevrolet, celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Nextel All-Star Challenge on May 19, 2007 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jason Smith/Getty Images for NASCAR)

Getty Images for NASCAR

After being held at Charlotte Motor Speedway for 31 of the previous 32 years, the All-Star Race needs a change in venue, Kevin Harvick says.

Several venues.

During his “Happy Hours” show Tuesday night on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, the 2007 winner of the All-Star Race suggested rotating the event between short tracks, naming the Fairgrounds Speedway in Nashville, Tennessee, Iowa Speedway and Bristol Motor Speedway as potential locations. The Stewart-Haas Racing driver also suggested the event be put up for bid.

“I live in Charlotte, I love going to Charlotte, but I’m of the opinion that the All-Star Race should move around,” Harvick said. “It’s obviously been in Charlotte a long time, but to have some intrigue and different things going around with it, I think it would be fun to take to a place like Nashville, Iowa or Bristol.”

Since its inception in 1985, the All-Star Race has been held annually at Charlotte with the exception of the 1986 event at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Harvick said there needed to be “stipulations” that the event should be accompanied by a week of All-Star Race festivities for fans (resurrecting the Pit Crew Competition, for example) that would be resemble the companion events to all-star games in the NBA or Major League Baseball.

“It should be a week of things that promote our sport in a city that has bid to have our All-Star Race there,” the 2014 Cup Series champion said. “As I look at all those things, a place like Nashville would be a lot of fun to go in and rebuild the fairground racetrack and take it to a track with so much history in our sport and be able to showcase that and update that racetrack and have a made-for-TV-type event.”

NASCAR announced its format last week for the Monster Energy All-Star Race at Charlotte. The May 20 event will feature an optional tire for the first time and the same format as the 1992 race.