LAS VEGAS, Nev: As the winner of the two most recent races in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, AJ Allmendinger had high hopes of using the momentum of the Talladega Superspeedway and the Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway ROVAL triumphs plus winning the pole for Saturday afternoon’s Alsco Uniforms 302 race to his advantage in the opening race in the penultimate Xfinity Series Playoff round.
Unfortunately, Allmendinger suffered two right-side loose wheels following a late-race caution which sent the Kaulig Racing driver back to pit road in the closing laps of the race under green flag conditions.
The untimely pit stop and without any other cautions to allow the team to use strategy or have additional chaos to allow them to rebound, Allmendinger finished 22nd, two laps in the arrears.
“I’m proud of everyone on the SRS Distribution,” the driver said after the race. “I thought it might be a struggle, it was a really big struggle that first run. Bruce (Schlicker, crew chief) and the guys kept making small adjustments to make it better. I thought were going to make an OK day out of it.
“It’s tough when you have mistakes like that, but we win and lose as a team. It’s frustrating, but you just have to move on.”
Obviously showing frustration in the moment, Allmendinger did not thrown shade at his team post-race knowing how hard everyone is working to make them Championship 4 eligible next month at Phoenix Raceway.
“It’s just the way it goes, everyone is trying hard,” added Allmendinger. “It’s part of the nature. Money pit stop, you are trying to get it all. I just wish I was wrong sometimes when I thought they were loose.”
Even after being told by his team that the lug nuts were tight, Allmendinger said he had to go with intuition and if he did not, it could have led to a much bigger issue and potentially even worse finish.
“I mean that’s what hard,” spoke Allmendinger. “When they say they think it’s tight, you just gotta go off gut and by the time I finally made the decision to do it, I felt like the tire was going to come off or both of them. I knew it was something on the right side.
The poor finish in Sin City also dropped Allmendinger below the cutline with two Xfinity Series races remaining in the Round of 8.
Despite winning the pole, Allmendinger struggled to find the perfect balance on his race car throughout the first two stages of the race, but dedicated work by his team led by crew chief Bruce Schlicker put the five-time Xfinity Series winner back in the thick of the battle with about 35 laps left in the race.
But the mistake by his pit crew now sends Allmendinger to Homestead-Miami (Fla.) Speedway next weekend in need of a huge recovery or a win that would catapult him into the Championship 4 race at Phoenix (Ariz.) Raceway next month alongside Las Vegas winner Josh Berry.
Allmendinger is seeded sixth, sixteen points behind Justin Allgaier for the final spot into the Championship 4 and says winning will be their mindset over the next two weekends.
“I mean it’s tough,” admitted Allmendinger of the road ahead. “We struggle to have the speed to win at these places, but we keep maximizing it. We just gotta go with the mindset to win.”
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01.
