Photo – Sarah Crabill/Getty Images
Considered NASCAR’s top road course racer, AJ Allmendinger has dazzled in qualifying at Sonoma Raceway with three top-two starts in as many years – but his results don’t match his speed.
Allmendinger entered all three races as the favorite to win, but finished 14th last year, 37th in 2015 and 37th in 2016. Despite the tough finishes, he’s led a series-high 56 laps across the three contests. The Chevrolet driver was doomed by a pit road penalty that cost him the opportunity to win last season, a fuel system issue in 2015 and damage to his car in 2014.
A native of nearby Los Gatos, California, Allmendinger will try to turn his Sonoma luck around in Sunday’s Toyota/Save Mart 350.
“It’s a place I truly love,” Allmendinger said. “It’s my home race. We haven’t really capitalized yet in a three-year span. Hopefully, we can do that this weekend.”
Allmendinger currently sits 26th in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series standings, 196 points behind Matt Kenseth for the final playoff spot, but can earn a berth in the postseason with a win on Sunday. In fact, he achieved the feat in 2014 when he won at the Watkins Glen International road course after entering the race 25th in the standings.
“We’ve got to clean up our own mistakes and make sure we are on point,” Allmendinger said. “If you can conserve rear tires – if you can do that – you have a great shot to win the race. We hope to go into Sonoma strong and come out on top.”
The Monster Energy Cup Series will race the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway on Sunday, June 25 at 3 pm ET. Coverage is available on FOX Sports 1, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
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