AJ Allmendinger is getting a second chance to drive for Penske Racing, but that opportunity won’t be in NASCAR and instead will come in the Izod IndyCar Series.
AJ Allmendinger will run Indy 500 for Penske Racing
AJ Allmendinger has reunited with Penske Racing and will drive two races this season for the team in the IndyCar Series, including the Indianapolis 500.
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Penske announced Friday that Allmendinger will drive a third car for the team in at least two events, including the Indianapolis 500.
Allmendinger’s first race will be April 7 at Barber Motorsports Park, a road course located in Birmingham, Ala., followed by the Indy 500 on May 26.
This will be Allmendinger’s second stint with Penske having driven for the team last season in the Sprint Cup Series. However, Allmendinger was suspended by NASCAR on July 24 after failing a random drug test and was subsequently released by the team shortly thereafter.
Roger Penske never wavered in his support of Allmendinger and said that he was open to bringing Allmendinger back to the team.
“It is exciting to welcome AJ back to Penske Racing,” Penske said in a team statement. “He obviously went through a tough time last year, but he has done everything he needed to in order to get back to racing at the top level of the sport.
“We have always believed in AJ and his ability and he deserves this opportunity.”
After completing NASCAR’s Road to Recovery program last September, Allmendinger returned to Cup in October and made four starts for Phoenix Racing.
This year Allmendinger is driving a limited Cup schedule for Phoenix Racing and made his first start of the season Sunday at Phoenix International Raceway where he finished 11th.
Before joining NASCAR full-time in 2007, Allmendinger was considered one of the more talented drivers in open-wheel racing having competed three full years in the Champ Car World Series, where he scored five victories and never finished lower than sixth in the championship order.
Allmendinger is also a former winner of the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona and in 171 starts in Cup has accumulated five top five and 29 top 10 finishes with a best result of second.
“I’m really looking forward to getting back to my roots and racing in the Izod IndyCar Series,” Allmendinger said. “I think it’s every driver’s dream to race for Team Penske at the Indy 500 and that experience is going to be incredible. ... I definitely intend to make the most of it.”
