AJ Allmendinger had lots to talk about after Sunday’s race at Sonoma. (Photo: Cornnell Chu | The Podium Finish)
SONOMA, Calif. – AJ Allmendinger seems to be turning the tide as evident with Sunday’s race at Sonoma Raceway.
After starting the season with a strong sixth place result in the Daytona 500, the two-time NASCAR Cup Series race winner hit a bit of a snag during the spring. However, the Los Gatos, California native has turned up the wick with spring heading toward the summer months.
Save for a 23rd place result at Darlington, Allmendinger has placed 18th or better in four of the past five races. Entering Sunday’s 110 lap race at Sonoma ranked 24th in points, the driver of the No. 16 Gabriel Glas Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 was one of the pre-race favorites given his road course successes in INDYCAR, IMSA and NASCAR competition.
Qualifying in fifth, Allmendinger worked his way to a fourth place result in Stage 1, vying for stage points in the early going. However, he dropped to 16th place in the early moments of Stage 2 for his first pit stop of the race.
Working his way up to 13th, it was a bit of a scrappy, tenacious fight for the Kaulig Racing driver. Still, with patience, sharp race craft and determination, the 41-year-old racer found himself back in the top 10 in the final moments of the race.
Most impressively, Allmendinger was in a spirited duel with Kyle Larson when he worked his way further up the leaderboard. On this occasion, the Californian’s experience and car was more than a match for Larson, ultimately driving and finishing to a sixth place result.
Allmendinger overcame a not so well timed caution to rally his way to the top 10. (Photo: Cornnell Chu | The Podium Finish)
Climbing up to 20th in the points standings, Allmendinger is making a compelling case to battle for a Playoffs position via points. Besides his confident driving, he observed how his No. 16 team prepared a solid car for the 1.99-mile, 12-turn road course.
“We started off pretty good there,” Allmendinger said. “We got up to fourth there in Stage 1, and I thought at that point, we were the third or fourth fastest car. We were about one lap away from being really good.”
At one point, it seemed like another promising start was about to be derailed because of a caution period prior to his pit stop. Along with this and the difficulty to pass on Sonoma’s Club Circuit layout, it was all about taking what was possible regardless of the circumstances and running position.
“I got really loose the second run, so we were going to pit and right before we pit, the caution came out,” he said. “That made us restart 16th and then it was just kind of a dog fight from there. I felt like we had pretty good pace with short-run speed, but I would get super loose in traffic, so I had to fight that. It’s just so hard to pass.”
This is where Matt Swiderski, crew chief, and the No. 16 team came into play. By far, the Kaulig Racing pit crew delivered with consistently strong, fast pit stops, a great catalyst with gaining positions.
No doubt, Allmendinger could be a Playoffs contender with the uptick in the No. 16 team’s performance. (Photo: Cornnell Chu | The Podium Finish)
Teamwork typically makes the dream work for a team driven sport like stock car competition. Races like the 110 lap event at Sonoma may be just what the doctor ordered for the cagey veteran racer and his resourceful team.
“I thought the No. 16 Gabriel Glas Chevy team did a great job all day,” Allmendinger said. “The pit stops were really good. We had a good stop there at the end – were able to make up a couple of spots and make what we could out of it.”
