NASCAR Cup Series veteran AJ Allmendinger has revealed that he could continue racing in the series into his 50s.
The Kaulig Racing star will make his 500th Cup Series start this weekend at Sonoma, and has revealed that the framework is in place for him to continue racing more of less until he decides he's done.
Allmendinger is known as a road course specialist, with a career average finish of 15 when he has to turn left compared to an average of 20.2 for the entirety of his career, and all three of his Cup Series wins coming at road races – the most recent in 2023 at the Charlotte Roval.
Speaking at last weekend's race in San Diego amid rumors that he could be jettisoned by the team after finishing just 26th in points last year, and being without an oval top-10 through the halfway point of this season, Allmendinger laughed off the idea that he could be on the free agent market.
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Allmendinger: I'm 100 percent confident
“I’m not going anywhere,” he told the media last week. “Like, I laugh when I see that. I mean, according to Chris [Rice, team CEO], I’ve got a contract till like 2032, so I’m not going anywhere. So I do kind of laugh about, like, ‘oh, next year?’ I’m like, that’s not on my mind because I’m here for life in one way or another.”
He added: “I’m 100 percent confident. Unless it’s on a beach with a pina colada. It sounds great. Doesn’t pay very well though.”
Rice confirmed on Sunday that Allmendinger's future with Kaulig Racing is in his own hands, with a contract through 2029 with options – as the driver said – through 2032. Allmendinger will turn 50 years old after the 2031 season.
“But it’s up to him how long he wants to do the full-time racing stuff,” Rice said. “He’s got to give himself a timeline, and so do we, but at the same time, he’s going to help us like he has over the last seven years build this program.”
What's Allmendinger himself working toward for the rest of his tenure in NASCAR? “I just don’t want to suck for my race team, honestly. Like, that’s the ultimate goal. My frustration comes from me.
"When I’m mad – and believe me, I don’t get in my rental car after the race and go, ‘No, that was OK’. Like, I get into the rental car after the race, like, God, just … but I’m frustrated with myself because I want to be better for us.”
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