Jamie McMurray topped the field and cemented his name in NASCAR Cup Series history by pulling off the upset in the 2014 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race.

Heading into 2014 as a quiet achiever, McMurray had seven Cup Series victories across his career, and just two top-10 finishes in the first 11 races of the 2014 season.

Charlotte Motor Speedway was historically a happy hunting ground for McMurray, as it’s where he claimed his first Cup Series victory in just his second ever start, filling in for the injured Sterling Marlin.

McMurray qualified 11th for the five-stage race, with Roush Fenway Racing’s Carl Edwards claiming the pole.

Segment One was won by Kyle Busch, but his night was cut short after a spectacular crash took out he and Joey Logano in Segment Two, when Busch spun down the track after contact with Clint Bowyer, and hit Logano head-on.

After a series of cautions taking out heavy hitters like Jeff Gordon and others, it looked like Kasey Kahne’s race to lose, winning Segments Two and Three.

McMurray slowly crept his way forward, claiming a second and a third in the final two Segments of the night, getting the highest average finishing position to start on the front row for the final 10 lap shootout to decide the winner.

On the last restart, McMurray took off, building a 3-second between himself and his rivals, Edwards and the 2014 Cup Series Champion Kevin Harvick.

Harvick slowly reeled in McMurray, but as the laps wound down, the #1 driver claimed the $1 million prize and cemented his place in NASCAR history.

“It was three or four of the hardest laps I’ve ever driven in my racing career,” McMurray said after the win.

“For me, in the car, that was as much fun as you can have, a 10-lap shootout, me and Carl going side by side.”

The All-Star Race would be McMurray’s final career victory, going on to retire from full-time driving in 2018, and now commentates the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series along fellow veteran driver Parker Kligerman.

The NASCAR Cup Series turns to Dover this weekend for the All-Star Race, starting 3am AEST.