| | | | | | | 84 - A.J. Allmendinger | Los Gatos, CA |
| | Primary Sponsor: Red Bull
Manufacturer: Toyota
Car Owner: Dietrich Mateschitz
Team: Red Bull Racing Team 2007, NASCAR Sprint Cup rookie, 43rd in driver standings; 2006, five-time Champ Car World Series race winner; 2004-06, 14 Champ Car podium finishes; 2004, Champ Car rookie of the year, Autosport rookie of the year; 2003, Atlantic champion; 2002, Barber Dodge Pro Series champion; two-time International Karting Federation champion
DING, DING: ROUND TWO
He knew it’d be a bold move, the leap from comfy open-wheel single-seaters to bulky stock cars. But AJ Allmendinger did it anyway. He’s like that — part calculated, part crazy.
AJ’s rookie season in Sprint Cup was about “seat time,” highlighted by a best finish of 15th at Charlotte and a fifth-place qualifying run at Texas.
Greg Allmendinger first noticed his son caught the fever at the ripe old age of … two. Greg remembers the time young AJ strapped into a three-wheeler powered by pedals and earned his first piece of hardware. “Most of the kids’ parents were out there telling them, ‘C’mon. C’mon,’” Greg recalled. “When the guy dropped the green flag, AJ was off and running. Gone! He smoked the kids he was racing with.”
The open-wheel path that was mapped out seemed to be working — BMX racing at age five, quarter midgets at eight and karting at 11. Then came the Skip Barber National and Pro series and the Atlantic Championship, where Allmendinger won the title in 2003 with nine poles and seven victories. Champ Car came calling in 2004, and he was named rookie of the year. In 2006, he lost one ride and quickly landed another with Forsythe Championship Racing, winning five races and making a midseason run at the title.
The stint with Forsythe opened career doors. Red Bull has backed Allmendinger since 2002 as one of its athletes, so he ditched braking and street circuits for banking and ovals.
Out of the car, he’s racing somewhere. Video games top AJ’s hobby list, and his game on “Madden NFL 08” can strike fear in any opponent. He bleeds green and gold for his beloved Green Bay Packers of the NFL.
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