The wild and winding career path of NASCAR’s AJ Allmendinger

NASCAR fans are relatively acquainted with AJ Allmendinger, who has been a major part of the series since 2007, but his path to racing stock cars was never really a straight line, nor was it originally aimed at this particular series at all. What could be considered a series of course-correcting events, most interesting and eventually considered fortunate across his career, would eventually land the talented driver yet a fourth run at the Cup series championship in 2025, as announced earlier this week.

It was clear that Allmendinger was a natural talent from a young age. Starting on BMX bikes, he’d quickly make a name for himself as a two-time champion in the International Kart Federation. He followed his championships with a rapid rise in the American open-wheel ladder series—winning the 2003 Champ Car Atlantic title before joining Champ Car in 2004 (the nightmarish IRL/CART split was still ongoing at this time). Red Bull had also quickly signed the young driver on as a brand representative. Allmendinger would dedicate three years to Champ Car, honing his skills before he won five races in the 2006 season. It seemed like he was well on his way to becoming one of the top open-wheel racers in the country. But much like what we’ll see as a bit of a trend with his career, what appeared to be one solid course trajectory would quickly change.

Joining Red Bull’s NASCAR venture

Red Bull was in its early years of getting into the business of running race teams instead of sponsoring them, and launched its Formula 1 operation in 2005. A year later, they took on the world of NASCAR. They’d sign their Red Bull athlete, Allmendinger in October 0f 2006 to go stock car racing, with Guenther Steiner joining as the technical director. Allmendinger was excited for this career pivot going into his rookie season.

“To race against some of the best drivers in the world in front of fans that are as enthusiastic about racing as I am is going to be a pretty big thrill,” he said. “I know this is going to be a lot of work in the upcoming months, but I couldn’t be happier to do it with Team Red Bull. Hopefully, we can all go out and deliver a good show.”

Unfortunately, fate had other plans, that ended in disaster. Allmendinger failed to qualify for the first four races of the 2007 season, including the season-opening Daytona 500 after crashing out in qualifying. His teammate, Brian Vickers, wasn’t faring much better. Driving the No. 84 Red Bull Toyota Camry, Allmendinger failed to make the big show in 19 of 36 races — over half the year.

The cars were just slow, but NASCAR was set to introduce a radically different race car partway through the 2007 season before fully shifting to it in 2008. That’s when the cereal box with a wing known as the “Car of Tomorrow” took over NASCAR’s top division. While Vickers began to show improvement, catching on to the new car was still proving difficult for an open-wheel driver like Allmendinger. His inability to beat the curve on learning the car found him temporarily replaced by veteran Mike Skinner, and they would share the car throughout the 2008 season.

It was May of that year when a glimmer of hope finally emerged for Allmendinger when he qualified for NASCAR’s annual All-Star Race via a victory in what was then known as the Sprint Showdown. It didn’t pay any points, but it was a much-needed confidence boost for the ailing driver. Later that year, he earned a career-best finish of ninth at Kansas. Things were just beginning to turn around when—like his career trajectory was known to do— everything changed again. He was let go from the Red Bull effort.

In 2009, he returned to stock car racing with a chip on his shoulder and something to prove. And there was trouble before the season even started. As the recession took hold of the country, partnerships like Petty Enterprises merging with Gillett Evernham Motorsports were taking shape. The rebranded effort became Richard Petty Motorsports, but the decision over who would be in what seat was complicated. A legal kerfuffle ensued and Allmendinger wouldn’t get to drive the No. 19 Dodge as planned. He ended up driving the No. 44 Valvoline-backed entry.

Luck and fortune decided to change in his favor though, as Allmendinger came out of the gate swinging, finishing third in the Daytona 500 after missing it in back-to-back years. It was the fourth-best showing ever by a debutant in NASCAR’s biggest race. Unfortunately, it was his only top-five of the year.

The team shifted from Dodge to Ford, and Allmendinger then piloted the iconic No. 43 for the 2010 season. It was his best season yet, ending the year ahead of both of his teammates in the championship standings [19th].Things only improved in 2011 and it seemed like he was on the cusp of becoming a NASCAR Cup Series star. At least Roger Penske certainly thought so. Penske signed Allmendinger for 2012, placing him behind the wheel of the No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Dodge. He’d prove his driving prowess before the season even began, competing in and winning overall at the biggest endurance race in the US, the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona, after a brilliant battle with Le Mans 24 champion Allan McNish. It was a high point for Allmendinger’s career, which would soon be followed by the lowest.

A terrible mistake

On the NASCAR side, there was no immediate success. While his teammate Brad Keselowski was on track to becoming the 2012 champion, Allmendinger was drowning in the midfield. In August, he was indefinitely suspended after failing a random drug test. He tested positive for an amphetamine, which he later revealed to be Adderall. He claimed he didn’t know what it was when it was offered to him, believing it to be an “energy pill.” He had been feeling tired and a friend had offered it to him before the Cup race at Kentucky.

He was consequently released as the driver of the No. 22 Penske car and his entire life had been completely upended. What do you do when you have nowhere else to go? You go home. For Allmendinger, his old home was open-wheel racing. And although his NASCAR career hit a major setback, his time at Penske was not.

A near-fairytale comeback

Allmendinger was going IndyCar racing with the very team forced to sideline him from his day job in NASCAR. With backing from The Captain (Roger Penske) himself, Allmendinger entered his first Indianapolis 500 in 2013. He did a sensational job, qualifying fifth and leading 23 laps in what was shaping up to be the comeback fit for the storybooks. Except, then his belts came undone. He was forced to have a lengthy green-flag stop to secure his seatbelts. Pitting from the lead on Lap 113/200, the 12.6s stop that followed cost him dearly. He still rallied to finish seventh, and was invited to make a few more starts with the Penske IndyCar team that year.

But the California native wasn’t done with stock cars, either. With both tenacity and stubbornness, he refused to give up on NASCAR. He drove part-time for James Finch at the Cup level. Then, Penske would offer him a shot in winning equipment in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. With two races in the Penske Xfinity car, Allmendinger certainly did not want to waste it. He led half the race at Road America, winning from pole position, then won again at Mid-Ohio in an even more dominant showing, going 2-0! He finally showed the stock car racing world what he was truly capable of, and they certainly took notice.

Good things come to those who wait

In 2014, Allmendinger was set to run the full Cup schedule with JTG-Daugherty Racing, having a real chance to contend for the win when the series arrived at Watkins Glen that year. However, standing between him and the checkered flag was NASCAR’s mid-2010’s version of Shane van Gisbergen. This was another Australian Supercars champ who had made a home in NASCAR, and won two of the last three Cup races at Watkins Glen — Marcos Ambrose.

The race came down to a two-lap dash to the finish. Ambrose moved Allmendinger as they entered the carousel and had all the momentum on corner exit. Allmendinger, having trudged through seven years of struggle and setbacks, was not going to let anyone take this chance away from him. He leaned on Ambrose, nearly pushing him into the grass as they raced towards the white flag. But he cleared him and never looked back. With over 200 starts to his name, Allmendinger could finally say he was a winner in the NASCAR Cup Series! It was also the first Cup win for JTG, who later signed Allmendinger for a massive five-year contract.

A single-car team in modern NASCAR is not an easy ride, and despite achieving victory at Watkins Glen, the following years were difficult for the No. 47 team. With two years left on his contract, Allmendinger and JTG parted ways following the 2018 season.

“Nobody likes losing their ride,” Allmendinger said after the news broke. “But the more time I sit and think about it and talk about it with my family, literally a year and a half, it hasn’t been fun. We’ve struggled. It’s hard on everybody. This year I’ve probably been a different person at the race track and at home. The possibility of not having a paycheck coming can be scary, but change can also be a very good thing, and I think it will be.”

Seeing that his driving career may have finally reached an end, Allmendinger signed a deal to become part of the NBC Sports broadcast team, mainly focusing on IMSA. 

He had no idea, but Allmendinger’s NASCAR career was the furthest thing from over. He agreed to run a handful of NASCAR Xfinity races with Kaulig Racing in 2019, which served to be the beginning of an incredible partnership. It didn’t get off to the best start, though. He was disqualified for a technical infraction in his first two races with the team. It wasn’t until his fifth and final start of the year at the Charlotte Roval when he and Kaulig were able to put it all together. He was victorious, earning himself a seat running in even more races the following year.

The camaraderie between Allmendinger and the Kaulig Racing group was evident though, and his career as a broadcaster was quickly put on hold. In 2020, he earned his first-ever NASCAR oval win, taking the checkered flag in the NASCAR Xfinity race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The victory qualified him for the Dash4Cash, collecting the $100,000 bonus in the next race at Homestead. Later in the year, he went back-to-back at the Charlotte Roval. His efforts earned him a full-time ride with Kaulig Racing for the 2021 NASCAR Xfinity Series season, as well as a part-time ride in the Cup Series. His mantra was a simple one — ‘Trophy hunting.’

Allmendinger was truly back and more motivated than ever before. He won five Xfinity races, doing so on both ovals and road courses. He even advanced into the Championship 4, but missed out on the title. He may have only ran five Cup races, but he certainly made the most of it. At the Indianapolis Road Course, chaos unfolded at the front of the field, but while the leaders clashed and penalties flew, Allmendinger was sitting in the perfect position to capitalize. He earned Kaulig Racing their first Cup win in a shocking upset, kissing the bricks at the most legendary of race tracks.

“I just won Indy!” he exclaimed after the race. In a time where fate was kinder, he could have said those same words after an Indianapolis 500 triumph, but no matter the race, winning at IMS still felt just as sweet.

He enjoyed another five NASCAR Xfinity wins in 2022 and expanded his Cup schedule to half a season. And now at over 40 years of age, he shows no signs of slowing down. 

He returned to full-time NASCAR Cup action in 2023—a first time in five years. He earned his third career Cup win during the playoffs at the Charlotte Roval. He’s always been a high-energy person, but the emotion he showed after that victory made everyone a fan. He screamed over the radio and could be heard weeping throughout the cool-down lap. He was still in tears when conducting a post-race interview on the frontstretch with NBC Sports. 

“This is why you do it. This is the only reason you do it,” said a tearful Allmendinger then. “You fight. All the blood, sweat, tears … I usually give these checkered flags away but I’m going to have to wrap this around (my son) Aero. My mom and dad, all my family and friends, those people see how much anguish and how much I put it on my shoulders when we’re struggling. It just means the world.”

He continued to stack up victories in the Xfinity Series as well, reaching 17 total by the end of 2023. No other driver has more NXS wins than him during the 2020s. He had finally found a real home in NASCAR, but the surprises weren’t over just yet.

Allmendinger was moved back down into the Xfinity Series by Kaulig Racing for 2023. He admitted that “my preference was to stay in Cup,” but he was willing to do whatever the team asked of him. He went on to say that Kaulig “really saved my happiness (in) my racing career.”

While the call baffled many, Kaulig stated the decision was not a demotion, but rather more about trying to grow and improve the entire organization. Allmendinger, so far, is winless this year, which hasn’t happened since 2018. But, on Thursday of this week, Kaulig Racing revealed that Allmendinger will make his fourth return to full-time NASCAR Cup Series action in 2025. He’ll get a chance to fight again, adding yet another chapter to his whirlwind 20-plus year career contending with the series.