What began with AJ Allmendinger providing clarity about his long-term future ended with a boost to his postseason prospects, as the Kaulig Racing driver gained crucial points on the NASCAR Cup Series’ Chase cutline on Sunday at Naval Base Coronado.
Allmendinger, always a threat when turning left and right, entered the weekend with a sizable deficit to the field. He wasn’t given time on the Chevrolet simulator to nail down the challenging 16-turn, 3.4-mile course with Kaulig running Ram trucks in the Craftsman Truck Series.
In some aspects, he entered San Diego, one of NASCAR’s biggest weekends of the 2026 season, blind.
“I struggled Friday and Saturday not having any sim and trying to learn the race track,” Allmendinger told Prime Video after notching a top-five effort.
Muscling the No. 16 Chevrolet through the twists and turns of the street circuit in qualifying, Allmendinger secured the 15th starting spot during Saturday’s qualifying session. Focused on maximizing points, he stretched his opening-stage run and climbed to fifth, collecting six valuable stage points. He followed that with a fourth-place finish in Stage 2 for seven more points, while fellow playoff hopefuls Shane van Gisbergen and Brad Keselowski had their respective days go awry.
Throughout the final stage, Allmendinger continued to be a force, knocking 23XI Racing driver Riley Herbst out of the way on the final lap to crack the top five in the finishing order. It was his first top five finish since the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway in 2025, some 26 races piror.
“I felt like today, it was a fun race,” Allmendinger added. “We got in a good rhythm, the track gripped up in certain sections and you could really attack it and there were some other sections that you had to be easy with it. Overall, a really good day for us.”
By tallying 45 points, Allmendinger tied Ryan Preece for the most points earned in the first of two consecutive road-course races out West. The three-time Cup victor leaped Michael McDowell to crack the top 20 in the regular-season championship standings, gaining 33 points on The Chase cutline, currently held by Preece.
Entering Sonoma Raceway, Allmendinger is only 21 points away from a provisional Chase spot.
“I try not to look at the points that much,” Allmendinger admitted. “But we will go to Sonoma and do we have the speed to win? You need a few things, like today, SVG not being in the race to have a chance. We can still go there and run top five, top six like we did today and make another good points day out of it.”
Allmendinger continuously raises the stakes at Kaulig. Entering the campaign, his primary objective was to crack the top 25 in overall points, knowing neither he or teammate Ty Dillon would receive any manufacturer support from Chevrolet. Instead, he has a legitimate shot to make The Chase, and is currently ahead of four drivers that made the postseason last year.
“I didn’t know what to expect this year,” Allmendinger noted. “I felt like if we could run top 25 in points, you are still beating a lot of really good cars. With that said, I hate that. I’m sure you guys hear me on the radio sometimes, I get so frustrated with myself because I feel like if we’re not running better, that’s on me not raising our game. I’m also trying to learn how to be better at that to be better for our race team.”
Regardless of the points, Allmendinger was thrilled with the weekend, racing in front of the sold-out crowd, highlighted by the United States Navy SEALs. He cherished the opportunity, considering it to be among the most unique opportunities of his racing career.
Allmendinger said of the vibes: “I’ve been very fortunate in my life between Champ Car and IndyCar to do a lot of street-course racing and go to some cool cities, different events – this might be the top one.”