Allmendinger to NASCAR
10/24/06 A reader writes, Dear AutoRacing1.com, If it is true of Allmendinger leaving for NASCAR, will Forsythe replace him for Mexico City? I hate to see him leave the series and wish him well – but why should Champ Car give him any more publicity. Tim Clingenpeel
Dear Tim, No, the Forsythe team should not replace him for Mexico City. First of all it is too late and second of all AJ showed great sportsmanship in Surfers Paradise by going over to congratulate the Newman/Haas crew for winning the championship after he fell out of the race. Remember, if RuSPORT had not fired him earlier this year, he would have never looked to NASCAR. You cannot hold grudges against a driver, after being fired and without a job, for seeking the best paying job he can, especially when it is for Toyota in NASCAR. You know Toyota is going to eventually dominate the series, so AJ is getting in on a good thing at the right time. He could end up becoming a big star because NASCAR understands the value in making its drivers the stars/heroes. Mark C.
10/21/06 According to this SPEEDTV.com article, NASCAR looks set to steal the best thing that has happened to open wheel racing in the America in a decade. The article goes on to say:
CSS Stellar Management (A.J.'s representatives) was asking Gerry Forsythe for $3 million a year to keep the kid he picked up off the unemployment line back in June.
Forsythe, who had offered Allmendinger a five-year contract with incentives and wanted his signature before this weekend, rejected that figure and basically stated they were too far apart to even continue negotiating.
That was a week ago, and everybody is pretty quiet on both sides. A.J. claims he hasn't signed anything, yet his fiancée told friends on Wednesday night, "We're going to NASCAR."
And nobody on his Forsythe crew seems to think he'll be back.
According to AutoRacing1.com sources in NASCAR, Toyota executives are convinced that they will get Allmendinger and final papers are being drawn up.
A spokesperson for AJ Allmendinger, Tara Ragan, told AutoRacng1.com, "We were hoping to have AJ's situation sorted out before Surfers Paradise, and next week we will resume working on that diligently when we get back in the USA."
10/13/06 Dear AutoRacing1.com, Are you sure Allmendinger is going to move to NASCAR next year? This would be bad. Jeff Parker, Houston
Dear Jeff, No we are not certain. This is only a rumor. We were fed the rumor from the NASCAR paddock from a usually good source. However, as we originally stated in this Rumor, we heard from our Champ Car sources (which we trust more) that AJ would stay with Champ Car. The best thing for AJ would be to stay with his winning combination that he has at Forsythe. Mark C.
10/13/06 Confirming what AutoRacing1.com sources told us when we broke this rumor that Allmendinger is, short of a miracle, definitely going to NASCAR next season, Team Red Bull General Manager Marty Gaunt told Sirius Radio Speedway Thursday that there are three drivers remaining on his wish list, and that he hopes to announce a teammate for Brian Vickers within the next few weeks. "There are three guys that we have our eye on," said Gaunt. "We're looking for the best, pure driver we can find. This is not about who brings the most sponsorship to the program. We want a driver. We are obviously interested in AJ Allmendinger. He is a proven winner, and he has been very impressive in his two NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races. We talked about splitting the ride between a veteran and a rookie, and ultimately ruled it out," he said. "After giving it some thought, we decided that we want to have the same driver in the car, 100% of the time." A.J. Allmendinger and Bill Elliott are believed to be two of the candidates.
As we pointed out awhile ago, if Allmendinger moves to NASCAR he will be going from a winning combination in Champ Car to a losing team in NASCAR with little hope of winning for quite some time. Team Red Bull's Nextel Cup debut will have to wait until at least Atlanta. Bill Elliott failed to qualify for the Bank of America 500 on Thursday night, posting the eighth-fastest time of the drivers trying to qualify on time.
10/11/06 A reader writes, If Allmendinger is indeed going to NASCAR next year, Gerald Forsythe should fire him effective immediately and put another driver in the car for Surfers and Mexico City, a driver that Champ Car can build on for the future, not a driver that has turned his back on the series. AJ should be told to not even pack his bags for Surfers. Mike Newbower, Indianapolis
10/11/06 According to our NASCAR sources, Champ Car's current hottest property, AJ Allmendinger, and his agent have decided to take the NASCAR money and will drive in NASCAR starting next year for 3 to 5 years. What this means for Champ Car is that they will now have no Americans in the series who have won Champ Car races. We also hear Ryan Hunter-Reay will be in NASCAR next year and he was the only other young American who has won a Champ Car race. Hunter-Reay showed that he had the character to turn down the Japanese money in the IRL (i.e. staying loyal to Champ Car), but being loyal and winning races doesn't seem to count for much in Champ Car……so, after waiting on the sidelines for over a year, he turned to NASCAR. Mark C.