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Sprint Cup
CUP: Allmendinger Now At Penske Racing
AJ Allmendinger finally steps in spotlight..
AJ Allmendinger was let go by Penske Racing earlier this year. (Photo: LAT Photographic)
AJ Allmendinger bounces into the Reel Works Studio for his Pennzoil shoot a few minutes after 9.
He has no trouble finding the production site, since the distance is less than a pitching wedge across Hamilton Street from one of his investments, "Small Bar," in the NC Music Factory section of the city.
The "Dinger" has all the energy of Tigger and the enthusiasm to match.
He'll need it for the day's laundry list of preseason sponsor requirements for NASCAR drivers. He'll be posed, prodded and expected to produce perfect lines extolling such virtues as, "It's not just any motor oil, it's Pennzoil," until the director is satisfied.
But the 30-year-old Los Gatos, Calif., native doesn't mind. After five years of battling the odds, Allmendinger's efforts finally have paid off. This year, he'll drive for Roger Penske.
And, yes, there still are times he can't believe this is happening.
"You work so hard to get to this point, and my parents have sacrificed so much, to me it's almost impossible to describe how I feel," said the driver who is not characteristically short on words.
"To think that I have driven for the King, Richard Petty, and Roger Penske. For a kid from California trying to make it on his own, with my parents mortgaging their house just so I could race, it's unbelievable.
"My mother used to ask me, 'Do you want rubber on your feet or rubber on the go-kart?' I'd always choose tires over new shoes. So, I don't think I've begun to grasp how big this is. I know it's big, but I'd rather win for (Penske) — and then have to think about it."
First up for Dinger is a spot with two Wounded Warriors for Pennzoil's upcoming "Getting our Freedom Back" program in partnership with the Paralyzed Veterans of America. His compassion for the soldiers — Anthony Radetic and Noah Currier — is genuine.
Allmendinger tackles Pennzoil's "For the Love of Cars" campaign — and nails it with an adjustment of the teleprompter and coaching from a veteran producer from NASCAR Media Group. He slows his delivery and concludes with, "That one's for the ladies."
What's his secret?
"Perfect hair, I have it. Good tan, blue eyes," he said with a smile.
But it's during a question-and-answer session, to be used internally for Pennzoil corporate, that Allmendinger's humility shines through.
Although he loves to play golf and basketball, Allmendinger explains how his passion for racing developed by watching his father, Greg, who was a carpet layer during the week and hobby racer on the weekends.
He remembers watching his dad and his friends gather at the racetrack on the weekends. It amazed Allmendinger how his dad could battle his buddies on the track, come to the verge of fisticuffs, then share beers at the end of the night. His father's range of emotions — whether he won or lost — had a dramatic effect on the youngster. Not surprisingly, Greg Allmendinger named his son after A.J. Foyt.
Then the focus shifted to Allmendinger, who started racing quarter-midgets at 8. He moved up to go-karts at 11 and still races karts to this day. Allmendinger loved the speed, but it was his ability "to control something that was just about out of control" that attracted him to racing the most.
The family would pile into an old Chevy truck to tracks in California and Nevada. While Allmendinger recalls those experiences, he said, "Those trips were fun, but all that time I was thinking, 'I want to be a big-time race-car driver.' "
His father had fueled those dreams with the legend of Jeff Gordon — another California kid from just an hour up the road in Vallejo — who raced karts, but already had made it to the big time.
"My dad always said he lived through me because he never got the opportunity to race," Allmendinger said.
During a break, Allmendinger is reminded how his luck has changed when someone from the motorsports industry drops by to congratulate him on his recent win in the Rolex 24 at Daytona.
He has no trouble finding the production site, since the distance is less than a pitching wedge across Hamilton Street from one of his investments, "Small Bar," in the NC Music Factory section of the city.
The "Dinger" has all the energy of Tigger and the enthusiasm to match.
He'll need it for the day's laundry list of preseason sponsor requirements for NASCAR drivers. He'll be posed, prodded and expected to produce perfect lines extolling such virtues as, "It's not just any motor oil, it's Pennzoil," until the director is satisfied.
But the 30-year-old Los Gatos, Calif., native doesn't mind. After five years of battling the odds, Allmendinger's efforts finally have paid off. This year, he'll drive for Roger Penske.
And, yes, there still are times he can't believe this is happening.
"You work so hard to get to this point, and my parents have sacrificed so much, to me it's almost impossible to describe how I feel," said the driver who is not characteristically short on words.
"To think that I have driven for the King, Richard Petty, and Roger Penske. For a kid from California trying to make it on his own, with my parents mortgaging their house just so I could race, it's unbelievable.
"My mother used to ask me, 'Do you want rubber on your feet or rubber on the go-kart?' I'd always choose tires over new shoes. So, I don't think I've begun to grasp how big this is. I know it's big, but I'd rather win for (Penske) — and then have to think about it."
First up for Dinger is a spot with two Wounded Warriors for Pennzoil's upcoming "Getting our Freedom Back" program in partnership with the Paralyzed Veterans of America. His compassion for the soldiers — Anthony Radetic and Noah Currier — is genuine.
Allmendinger tackles Pennzoil's "For the Love of Cars" campaign — and nails it with an adjustment of the teleprompter and coaching from a veteran producer from NASCAR Media Group. He slows his delivery and concludes with, "That one's for the ladies."
What's his secret?
"Perfect hair, I have it. Good tan, blue eyes," he said with a smile.
But it's during a question-and-answer session, to be used internally for Pennzoil corporate, that Allmendinger's humility shines through.
Although he loves to play golf and basketball, Allmendinger explains how his passion for racing developed by watching his father, Greg, who was a carpet layer during the week and hobby racer on the weekends.
He remembers watching his dad and his friends gather at the racetrack on the weekends. It amazed Allmendinger how his dad could battle his buddies on the track, come to the verge of fisticuffs, then share beers at the end of the night. His father's range of emotions — whether he won or lost — had a dramatic effect on the youngster. Not surprisingly, Greg Allmendinger named his son after A.J. Foyt.
Then the focus shifted to Allmendinger, who started racing quarter-midgets at 8. He moved up to go-karts at 11 and still races karts to this day. Allmendinger loved the speed, but it was his ability "to control something that was just about out of control" that attracted him to racing the most.
The family would pile into an old Chevy truck to tracks in California and Nevada. While Allmendinger recalls those experiences, he said, "Those trips were fun, but all that time I was thinking, 'I want to be a big-time race-car driver.' "
His father had fueled those dreams with the legend of Jeff Gordon — another California kid from just an hour up the road in Vallejo — who raced karts, but already had made it to the big time.
"My dad always said he lived through me because he never got the opportunity to race," Allmendinger said.
During a break, Allmendinger is reminded how his luck has changed when someone from the motorsports industry drops by to congratulate him on his recent win in the Rolex 24 at Daytona.
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