LEBANON, Tenn.: AJ Allmendinger has always been a force to be reckoned with on road courses, but last year’s victory at Nashville Superspeedway further displayed his versatility at various venues.
While Allmendinger continues to prove that he’s more than a one-trick pony, it’s hard to believe that a year has passed since 43-year-old racer’s last Xfinity Series win.
Allmendinger scored his 17th-career NXS victory at the 1.333-mile track just outside of Music City.
“Nashville has been a great race track for us on both the Xfinity and Cup side of our program,” said Allmendinger, who is currently eighth in the Xfinity standings. “Being able to win the Xfinity race last year was a huge highlight; getting that guitar that is so iconic and then running inside the top 10 all day in the Cup race.
“It’s a racetrack that I have enjoyed since we started going to it. Hopefully, we can have the same success that we have had the past few years.”
Allmendinger finished 10th in the NASCAR Cup Series race at Nashville Superspeedway last year. The defending winner of the Tennessee Lottery 250 enjoys an average Xfinity Series finish of 7.3 at the track.
But getting the right feel for the driver in the No. 16 Chevrolet has been difficult this season. Perhaps the additional seat time with running double duty will benefit Allmendinger.
Certainly, Kaulig Racing’s struggles have been well-documented of late. Both Allmendinger and Shane Van Gisbergen totaled their cars at Iowa Speedway. Van Gisbergen stole Allmendinger’s thunder at Portland International Raceway and Sonoma Raceway earlier this month when he scored consecutive road course victories.
At some point, Allmendinger’s luck has to turn. Maybe Nashville is a venue where the Los Gatos, Californian can get his season back on track.
“Looking forward to the weekend and thinking we can have a good run in both race cars and find the momentum that we need,” Allmendinger said.
Allmendinger will have his share of challengers on Saturday. Riley Herbst, who finished second to the No. 16 Kaulig Chevrolet in 2023, is also competing in both the Xfinity and Cup races this weekend.
Herbst has posted three top 10s in his last four NXS starts. At Nashville, the 25-year-old Las Vegas driver has finished on the podium at Nashville in his last two starts. His average finish since joining Stewart-Haas Racing is fifth at Nashville.
“I’m pumped to head back to Nashville again,” Herbst said. “The city itself is so much fun, but so is the racing at the superspeedway. I don’t know how to describe it, but the track works with my style of racing. This is a race that I had circled on the calendar for this summer after three very strong years at Nashville. That first year we ended up 10th, then in 2022 we finished third, and last year we were second.
“We keep trending upwards at Nashville, and hopefully that proves to continue to be true this weekend. A win there would be so cool, especially with the double-duty weekend. It can be a difficult track, for sure, due to how slick it can get in the summer heat, but you just have to put together a great race and be there at the end. No mistakes, fast pit stops, and speed in the race car. Hopefully, we can see all of that this weekend.”
Justin Allgaier leads all active drivers with nine starts and five top-five finishes at Nashville. The driver of the No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet dominated the 2022 race, leading 134 of 188 laps en route to his first victory at the concrete track.
“I always love coming back to Nashville,” Allgaier said. “This has been one of my favorite places on the schedule and it’s somewhere that we have always unloaded very strong at.
“Hopefully, that will be the case again this weekend with our Hellmann’s / Dollar General Literacy Foundation Chevrolet and we will be right up front fighting for the win in the end come Saturday. This No. 7 group is ready to go.”
Follow Lee Spencer on Twitter @CandiceSpencer or email her at: [email protected].
