Jeff Gluck

USA TODAY Sports

CONCORD, N.C. -- Clint Bowyer won a race he didn't even want to be in.

Bowyer and AJ Allmendinger took the final two transfer spots for Saturday night's Sprint All-Star Race, using Friday's last-chance race at Charlotte Motor Speedway to secure their invitations.

But since the Sprint Showdown is reserved for non-winners, Bowyer said it "sucked" to be in the field.

"I wasn't very thrilled about being in this race, but nonetheless, it's what we deserved," said Bowyer, whose last win was in October 2012. "We haven't run well and run where we're capable of running. It's been frustrating.

"But it's a humbling sport. It always has been. I'm a big boy, and if this is where we are, we've got to go out there and race hard and qualify into that race."

He did just that, with Allmendinger beating out Casey Mears, Marcos Ambrose and Aric Almirola for the other transfer spot.

The two drivers advanced to the $1 million-to-win exhibition, along with Sprint Fan Vote winner Josh Wise.

"Our mile and a half program so far this year, we've really struggled," Allmendinger said. "… To come up with some new ideas and at least come here and try it, I'm really happy the car is better. We're definitely making progress."

Bowyer took the lead from Allmendinger after the first 18 laps and held the top position heading into the break between the two 20-lap segments.

But the pit strategy during a mandatory caution caused a big shakeup in the running order.

Bowyer took four tires while several cars ahead of him took two, including Austin Dillon, Paul Menard, Allmendinger and Danica Patrick. But Bowyer needed just four laps to reclaim the lead and then drove away from the field.

"Truth be told, I really believe if you can qualify into the All-Star Race from this qualifying race, it could be an advantage," Bowyer said. "Every time we have these night races, we're practicing during the day and it's a completely different set of circumstances for the race. That's 40 laps of practice with what we're going to see tomorrow night for $1 million dollars."

It didn't take long for the action to start. On lap 3, Ambrose got a nudge from Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and lost control of his car in a long, smoky slide. Richard Petty Motorsports teammate Almirola barely scraped by on the outside.​

Patrick, who won the fan vote in 2013, will not compete Saturday night.

Bowyer told Wise: "For you and your community to beat Danica out is saying something."

Here are the drivers who have qualified for the All-Star Race:

Jamie McMurray, Brad Keselowski, Kevin Harvick, Kasey Kahne, Denny Hamlin, Tony Stewart, Greg Biffle, Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth, Joey Logano, Jeff Gordon, Ryan Newman, David Ragan, Kurt Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Brian Vickers, Martin Truex Jr., Dale Earnhardt Jr., Carl Edwards, Bowyer, Allmendinger and Wise.

FRIDAY'S RESULTS

In Concord, N.C.

Lap length: 1.5 miles

(Start position in parentheses)

1. (4) Clint Bowyer, Toyota, 40 laps, 149.7 rating, 0 points.

2. (2) A J Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 40, 127, 0.

3. (9) Casey Mears, Chevrolet, 40, 106.8, 0.

4. (5) Marcos Ambrose, Ford, 40, 100, 0.

5. (10) Aric Almirola, Ford, 40, 92.8, 0.

6. (3) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 40, 90.1, 0.

7. (8) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford, 40, 90.3, 0.

8. (1) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 40, 96.9, 0.

9. (6) Paul Menard, Chevrolet, 40, 81.7, 0.

10. (7) Danica Patrick, Chevrolet, 40, 73.2, 0.

11. (15) David Gilliland, Ford, 40, 64.2, 0.

12. (11) Cole Whitt, Toyota, 40, 65.1, 0.

13. (13) Alex Bowman, Toyota, 40, 63.1, 0.

14. (14) Dave Blaney, Ford, 40, 50.5, 0.

15. (17) Michael Annett, Chevrolet, 40, 56.3, 0.

16. (21) Joe Nemechek, Toyota, 40, 42.9, 0.

17. (18) Landon Cassill, Chevrolet, 40, 37.9, 0.

18. (16) Josh Wise, Chevrolet, 40, 44.2, 0.

19. (19) Ryan Truex, Toyota, 40, 36.4, 0.

20. (12) J.J. Yeley, Chevrolet, 40, 45.2, 0.

21. (20) Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet, 40, 33.7, 0.

22. (22) Blake Koch, Ford, 40, 25.9, 0.

23. (23) David Stremme, Chevrolet, vibration, 25, 28.4, 0.

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Race Statistics

Average Speed of Race Winner: 158.417 mph.

Time of Race: 0 hours, 22 minutes, 47 seconds.

Margin of Victory: 2.547 seconds.

Caution Flags: 2 for 3 laps.

Lead Changes: 4 among 3 drivers.

Lap Leaders: A.Allmendinger 1-18; C.Bowyer 19-20; A.Dillon 21-23; C.Bowyer 24-40.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Led, Laps Led): C.Bowyer, 2 times for 19 laps; A.Allmendinger, 1 time for 18 laps; A.Dillon, 1 time for 3 laps.

Wins: K.Harvick, 2; J.Logano, 2; Ku.Busch, 1; Ky.Busch, 1; D.Earnhardt Jr., 1; C.Edwards, 1; J.Gordon, 1; D.Hamlin, 1; Bra.Keselowski, 1.

Top 12 in Points: 1. J.Gordon, 394; 2. M.Kenseth, 379; 3. Ky.Busch, 373; 4. D.Earnhardt Jr., 368; 5. C.Edwards, 367; 6. J.Logano, 346; 7. J.Johnson, 340; 8. R.Newman, 332; 9. G.Biffle, 328; 10. B.Vickers, 327; 11. Bra.Keselowski, 326; 12. D.Hamlin, 318.