Photo Credit: Noel Lanier/OnPitRoad.com
AJ ALLMENDINGER
NO. 47 KROGER CLICKLIST CHEVROLET SS
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY RACE REPORT
Race: Coke Zero 400 Powered by Coca-Cola
Date/Time: Saturday, July 1 / 7:30 PM ET
TV Network / Radio: NBC / MRN / SIRIUSXM
QUOTES:
Challenges: “Daytona is like a Christmas present that you open up and it’s socks sometimes – – it depends on how it plays out,” Allmendinger said. “It’s just a challenge. This Daytona race is a lot slicker than the Daytona 500. It’s very humid. The cars don’t have hardly any downforce on them at that point. Racing gets three wide there. So, track position is even more critical early in the race than trying to wait it out. You can’t quite do that anymore. If you do wait it out, you have to go a lot quicker. So, it’s a challenge for sure.”
Waiting is the hardest part: “It’s hot there in July at Daytona so the track gets hot and slick,” Allmendinger said. “The difference is that you have to wait like eight hours in anticipation through the morning and afternoon before you get in the race car. It makes it harder.”
Keep it on all fours: “We finished third in the Daytona 500 but that doesn’t mean anything when you go back there,” Allmendinger said. “You just kind of hope and pray sometimes. I’ve already been on my roof once this year. So, I’m going to pray to not do that again.”
Mentally and physically draining: “You’re mentally worn out there by the end of the race,” Allmendinger said. “Physically, I find the speedway races are the hardest thing because you are sitting there wide open the whole time or most of the time. It’s hard on your back sitting there. The pedals get really hot. Sitting there for me, the speedway races hurt your back, legs and your feet because it’s held wide open. Heck, there’s many times, when I’m not in a big pack three wide, I’ll switch to my left foot on throttle just because you’re sitting there the whole time not moving.”
Butterflies: “Every time I get in a race car my stomach is nervous” Allmendinger said. “I want to go out there and compete against the best. Fortunately and unfortunately we are competing against the best. When it’s going well, you feel great. When it’s going bad, you don’t. It’s a daily reminder that you’ve got to get better. I always joke around. We have a great life, but for all of us we put our passion and our 100% effort into it. When it’s going bad, it seems like the worst thing in the world as bad as that sounds because it really isn’t. We’re just racing cars. Yeah, I get nervous every time I get in a race car. I want to perform at my best for me, for my race team, for the sponsors. I think the moment I get in a race car and I have no nerves or don’t have that feeling, then that’s probably when I should stop. Just like the first bicycle race I had compared to strapping into the car on Sunday is the same nerve, the same stomach flutter. So, it’s all there.”
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FAST FACTS:
Career Starts: 315
Wins: 1
Top-fives: 10
Top-10s: 49
Pole Awards: 4
First Start: 3/25/2007 Bristol
First Pole: 4/10/2010 Phoenix
Last Pole: 8/8/15 Watkins Glen
Best Start: 1 – 4/10/2010 Phoenix
Best Finish: 1 – 8/10/2014 Watkins Glen
Driver DOB: 12/16/1981
Hometown: San Jose, Calif.
Crew Chief: Ernie Cope
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