After AJ Allmendinger’s Sob, Kenny Wallace Confesses “I’ve Lost About $600,000”

NASCAR as a sport is different from NASCAR as a profession. What we see in races is a combination of multiple factors working together behind the scenes. Recently crowned champion of the Charlotte Roval, road course specialist AJ Allmendinger has undergone quite the journey to reach where he is now.

Alongside him is a former NASCAR driver, Kenny Wallace, on the talk show, Kenny Conversation. At one point in the conversation, Kenny is excited to know more about what AJ Allmendinger had to face when he arrived in NASCAR from a completely different racing circuit. Aging like fine wine, the 41-year-old doesn’t want to stop his progress as the years pass.

AJ Allmendinger says this is the best he has ever been as he reveals his toil in NASCAR.

Every time NASCAR visits a road course, a name that pops up more often than not in a discussion of favorites is AJ Allmendinger. In the last race of the Round of 12, ‘The Dinger‘ of NASCAR showed everyone exactly why he is considered a road course specialist. As the conversation continued, Kenny fulfilled his curiosity through questions.

In one instance, Kenny inquired if AJ Allmendinger had ever felt better about himself throughout his career. “Yeah, especially in my NASCAR side of it. Definitely,” answered Allmendinger. The fans might have underestimated the importance of AJ’s win at Charlotte due to its value in the bigger picture of a championship pursuit. Still, for someone who has endured the journey of a vagabond in NASCAR like him, it meant a world of good.

The veteran also offered his services to powerhouse Team Penske, who used his abilities to their fullest in the Xfinity Series after his initial stint with the now non-operational Red Bull Racing and Richard Petty Motorsports. Apart from that, what Allmendinger enjoyed the most was the sheer amount of competition required to qualify for a race back then. Kenny indeed related to AJ’s experience, having raced in a period that had similar procedures.

“At least a time that had the most competitive full-field Series, right? Kenny, you were a part of that. You know, in the #78 car just trying to qualify the race with that team, it felt like you won. I remember qualifying last at Bristol making the race, and I was like, this is the happiest moment of my life. I just qualified last, but I’m in the race, you know?”

“Just kind of as I got my feet under me at Red Bull, they let me go for Scott Speed, and then it’s like I spent the next year at Petty giving all my prize money back and mymedic.es any money I made just to keep racing. So it was like, it didn’t feel like until about the fourth or fifth year that I’d actually even understood how to drive a stock car, let alone race it.”

AJ doesn’t shy away from giving credit where it’s due and thanks his team owner and president for getting the best out of him by allowing him to be himself in the #16 car. Although there have been some questionable decisions and a shaky base for AJ Allmendinger to return to the Cup Series next season, he has nothing but respect for his team for helping him be a better version of himself with every race.

“So everything that I’ve kind of journeyed through in NASCAR, I definitely feel like now that I’m the best that I’ve ever been and on all aspects. Not just on ovals but even on road courses. What allows that is Matt Kaulig and Chris Rice. They let my personality just be me. They know I’m crazy, like you hear me on the radio.  That’s why, at 41 years old, I don’t feel like I’m anywhere close to stopping because I just feel like every time I get on the race track, I am getting better.”

The concept of charters and franchising was unknown in NASCAR back then. Now that the system has changed and charters have to be bought and refurbished, there is an increase in what the drivers are demanding. Race wins and position in the point standings, among many other factors. That is one reason drivers like AJ Allmendinger gained the spotlight this season.

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Kenny Wallace reveals how he lost a lot of money in NASCAR.

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Financial dependence has seen a massive surge in recent years. Teams have stopped looking for drivers from a racing perspective and must also consider a driver’s marketability, sponsors he can bring in, and eventually, the revenue it generates. Kenny Wallace has seen the sport evolve into its current scenario. Upon listening to AJ Allmendinger and one of his anecdotes about his financial struggles, he answered back with an experience of his own.

“So I was driving for Robbie Benton, and I brought him like 1.2 million dollars. That’s all I could muster up, and I’m brutally honest in a good way. I’m going to make you feel better, so I give him 1.2. That’s all I got. I know it costs whatever you know, 5 or 6. We get three quarters away through the year, and he goes, ‘What kind of money you want?” narrated Kenny.

“Well, I’m doing TV, right? So I’m making money on TV. I said look, you just give me sixty percent of the points fund money at the end of the year. He says, ‘You sure?’ I said I got my TV money from the TV show. We get to Indianapolis Raceway Park, and he says, ‘I can’t pay you. We are in debt, so you are driving free,”

Drivers having to pay for their rides prior to the beginning of the season was the norm in those days. While the regular racers in competition found it relatively easier to maintain the cash flow, struggling drivers who had to come up from the grassroots found it incredibly tough. Kenny emphasizes that, as he added,

“I’ve had race teams say, Hey, you want your money here in December? You want your money now; you know it’s your tax money, or do you want to wait till the next year? I said, Oh, I’ll wait till the next year, and that team filed bankruptcy. AJ, I’ve lost about $600,000 in real money. So I relate with you.”

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The conversation between the two will resonate with the drivers from previous generations who have faced the exact struggles these two have. While things are better now, understanding where all the hard work has led is often essential.