AJ Allmendinger rewinds to the day Red Bull went from calm to chaos in three unforgettable Darlington laps

NASCAR Cup Series driver AJ Allmendinger is among the few drivers who worked with Team Red Bull in stock car racing. He was recently featured in an interview with NASCAR ahead of the Darlington Raceway event, where he opened up about his debut on the track.

Allmendinger ventured into the Cup Series in 2006 with Team Red Bull as a part-time driver and competed in two races. A year later, in 2007, he secured a full-time seat with the team; however, most of the year's races resulted in DNQ (do not qualify). After struggling through an entire season, he secured two top-ten finishes in 2008 before moving to Richard Petty Motorsports.

AJ Allmendinger's debut at the Darlington Raceway happened in May 2007 at the Dodge Avenger 500. He qualified one spot above NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Jr. in P20 with a best time of 30.185 seconds and a top speed of 162.915 mph. Revisiting the memory of his first race, the driver stated:

“It was the first lap I got out there. Yeah, I think when I was in the 84 (Red Bull) car, the second lap I hit the wall in practice, and they’re like, ‘Nah, it’s fine. You’re supposed to do that.’ Then the third lap, I really hit it, they’re like, ‘OK, that’s still OK.’ And then the fourth lap, I KO’d it, and they’re like, ‘Yeah, kid, that’s too much,’ and to be quite honest, I still feel that way when I show up to that place. I still don’t really know how to get around it. So it is definitely unique."

He concluded by making a hilarious remark:

“I don’t know if I’ll go the extreme of Kyle Petty filling it up with water and doing a bass fishing tournament out of it. It’s definitely a tough race track that I’m constantly still trying to learn how to drive.” (via NASCAR.com)

AJ Allmendinger has 13 starts at the 1.366-mile track in his nearly two-decade Cup Series career. However, he still has to park his car at the finish line or among the top ten drivers. His career-best finish at Darlington Raceway came two years ago in 2023, where he secured a P13 finish.

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The Kaulig Racing team president sent a congratulatory message upon AJ Allmendinger's Hall of Fame induction

In March 2025, former NASCAR Xfinity Series driver AJ Allmendinger was inducted into the West Coast Stock Car/Motorsports Hall of Fame. Kaulig Racing team president Chris Rice shared a congratulatory post for his team driver on his social media account.

Allmendinger shared a post on his X account marking his attendance at the event held at the South Point Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. Rice reshared the post and added a congratulatory message for his team driver:

"A very awesome night!!! Congratulations @AJDinger"

AJ Allmendinger ranks 18th on the Cup Series points table with 148 points. He secured two top-ten finishes in seven starts this season. Additionally, he has an average start of 14.857 and an average finish of 20.714.