AJ Allmendinger is making a comeback to the Cup Series after spending a year in the Xfinity Series. He finished third in driver standings last season and proved himself worthy of a seat in the premier series. Set to drive the No. 16 Chevrolet Camaro for Kaulig Racing, he has generated a high expectation of himself in Denny Hamlin.
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The Joe Gibbs Racing veteran said on Actions Detrimental recently that Allmendinger could “possibly” enter the 2025 Cup Series playoffs using his road course mastery. His exact words went, “I think AJ could be kind of a backdoor playoff team driver… There’ll be a race where they [drivers like Shane van Gisbergen and Kyle Larson] kind of stub their toes.”
“I think AJ is solid enough that he always knows how to get himself in position at road courses that he could sneak in and get a road course win and put that team in the playoffs. It’s possible. I’m not saying it’s probable. It’s possible.” The vote of confidence is backed by the impressive numbers that Allmendinger has pulled over the years.
He has three road course wins and several top-10 finishes. They make him one of the better road course drivers in NASCAR currently. Most recently, he won at the Charlotte Roval in 2023 before being packed off to the Xfinity Series. He secured three top-10 finishes in the Charlotte Roval, Sonoma, and COTA last season.
What Allmendinger expects from his return to the Cup Series
In a recent interview with Fox Sports, the driver noted that he was just glad to be back racing the Next Gen cars. “I don’t know if I am on the lighter side of popular opinion on that or what, but I enjoy driving the Cup cars … I feel fortunate more than anything that Matt [Kaulig] and Chris [Rice] still believe in me to try to help whatever program they want me in.”
He is also excited about the fact that the team is finally getting a proper Competitor Director in Mike Cook. Trent Owens will serve as his crew chief. He added, “To have Mike Cook there as our competition director, to be able to be the guy that focuses on just kind of the everyday grind of making sure that we’re getting better… We’re doing the right things, things like that.”
In 2023, he finished 21st in the driver standings in the Cup Series. He will hope to better that performance in 2025 at the very least. Also, the upcoming Daytona 500 will be the 12th of his career. His first Great American Race was with Richard Petty Motorsports in 2009. Time will tell if Hamlin’s prediction turns upright.
