AJ Almendinger and his number 16 Celsius Kaulig Racing’s Chevrolet Camaro qualified for the championship at Phoenix Raceway in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, but the hard work this season is just beginning for the veteran driver. Almendinger caught up with Newsweek for an exclusive interview ahead of this weekend’s National Debt Relief 250 at Martinsville Speedway.

Do you drink Celsius on race day?

AJ Almendinger: Yeah, there’s always a mix of trying to hydrate and just getting ready for the race, but it’s something I constantly need throughout the weekend. The good thing is that Celsius does a great job of keeping us very well stocked with it, so I went out of the cry, grabbed one, and went back in. But yeah, it’s essential for me on the race weekend.

You’ve already completed the Phoenix Championship Round. What’s your mindset heading into tomorrow’s race at Martinsville?

AJ Almendinger: Yeah, I mean I think at least for me, I always do it because I like to challenge myself more than anything to compete, to go out there and be the best for the race team. So the pressure isn’t there trying to make the final four and luckily because I’ve been in that situation at Martinville, it’s probably one of the most stressful racetracks I’ve had to do that at. So it’s definitely taken the pressure off, but I still have the pressure on my shoulders when it comes to going out there and trying to win the race and be the best for the race team. So for me, what I’m focusing on is that there’s still a trophy to be won, especially here at Martinsville. The grandfather clock is very iconic and would be one of those trophies that I would have loved to have always.

So definitely competing for that. And I think Homestead last week I went in there, I had a really fast race car that I ran up front. Hopefully we can do that in Martinsville because you still want to continue that momentum that we have from winning Vegas and locking up in the final four. I think our preparation for Martinsville was a little different. The race car is still prepared as close as it would be if it were a final four tryout race. But when it comes to the sim, things like that, we didn’t do much just because we were focused on Phoenix. But yeah, it’s still the same mentality. I want to win, and if I don’t, I want to finish as high as possible to keep the momentum going.

Still carrying momentum from Vegas?

AJ Almendinger: Yeah, I really felt like at Homestead we allowed ourselves to try a few different things, but more than anything, we didn’t have a great practice, but I thought the race was really good. I had a top three car. Finishing 10th doesn’t really show that because we were stuck, we had the opportunity to do a different strategy and really try to steal the wind. So I was really excited to leave Homestead just because of the speed I had. And that’s something over the last four weeks that we’ve really focused on. I mean I really tried the second half of the year honestly, but in the last four weeks I showed that I had a lot of speed. So I left Homestead feeling like I had as much momentum as I did in Las Vegas.

You had a lot of success at Martinsville, you had top fives, some top tens. Think you can come home with a grandfather clock this weekend?

I hope so. I know the drivers who are not locked in and this race has shown that over the last couple of years. I mean there’s a lot of desperation and aggression. So if it’s a caution late in the race, if you’re leading the race or in the lead, there’s a chance you’ll be moved. And then there’s the mentality that you don’t really want to piss anyone off by going to Phoenix and making an enemy.

So there is a fine line that I feel as a driver I have to be because of course we want to win and if we have the opportunity to win we will do everything we can to win the race. But you definitely don’t want to make those enemies and just make Phoenix tougher than it already is. So in the spring here we had a really good car and felt we had a chance to win. We were caught in a restart wreck there. So I’ll find out more after we go to practice and qualify and see what kind of speed we have. But the mentality is that this is a racetrack that we’ve always been good at and then we can go and win.

How is the team feeling at training today?

AJ Almendinger: Yeah, we feel good. The training and qualifying here is unique just because when the race track starts, as we speak now, the trucks are on the circuit, there is no rubber on the circuit. So I think this track changes a lot because depending on how the rubber is laid, it really changes the handling characteristics of the car. So from now on, when we talked and the trucks that will be on the racetrack, then we will practice and qualify, and tomorrow we will practice the qualifying cup before the race, this track will change a lot. But I think he’s just trying to get into a rhythm here. And ultimately, we’d love to have a good qualifying session just because that sets up the pit picks for Phoenix, which is a big deal. But we feel good about what we’re doing and hopefully we’re downloading here and getting good speed.

It’s a strange time. We are approaching the silly season, the season is ending. Right now, Stewart-Haas Racing is shutting down, 23XI is going through court… What do you think of the current state of NASCAR right now?

AJ Almendinger: Yeah, I mean, I think there’s a lot going on right now in NASCAR. I will always say that it is sad to see an iconic team like Stewart-Haas Racing go. I think it’s sad for the fans as well as the race team in general, but it’s definitely sad for the people who work there. There are so many people working there and you just hope they can find other places and teams to work on. So that’s a tricky side.

The process side, honestly, I haven’t paid too much attention to a lot of the inner workings and details that I’m sure we don’t know and things that will happen for better or worse. Those are decisions that those organizations made and it has nothing to do with us, myself driving for Kaulig Racing. So I don’t really pay any attention to it.

What I’m focused on is really, obviously, it’s the next two weeks here where we’re trying to win a championship and then the offseason trying to get our Cup program where it needs to be and go to the Daytona racetrack in 2025. I feel that I showed a lot of pace like last week at Homestead, I ran in the top 10 all day. We passed a lot of cars. We’re showing that when we’re at our best, we can go with the top teams, but we need to do that more consistently when it comes to people and just the things we need to do in the offseason to get where we need to be. to at least start the season, that’s what we’re focusing on.

So I can tell you the competition side, which I focus on, which is at its peak when it comes to Xfinity and Cup. So we have to be on our ‘A’ game and that’s what we’re focusing on.

How does it feel if you can win a championship?

AJ Almendinger: Well, first of all, just to have the opportunity to win a championship is a huge accomplishment. It’s an honor to be able to race for a championship in NASCAR. I’ve been able to do it once before and unfortunately Phoenix is ​​a racetrack for whatever reason. I’d like to tell you why I think we would fix the problem if we knew why, as a racetrack, we’ve struggled in the past. So we won Vegas and to give ourselves these three weeks to do everything we can to get ready is a huge thing for us. So that’s kind of what we focus on. Not really, I think I don’t let myself think about the championship just because I know the challenge it’s going to be to go any three teams that we’re competing against just because I know what we’ve done in the past in Phoenix and we have to be a lot better better than we were

So, I don’t let my mind wander, but I tell you this; to win a championship in the top echelon of motorsports, that’s what we all strive for. I mean, that’s what we strive for every day. I mean, it’s all the ups and downs that I go through, especially my wife Tara and my son Arrow, my family and friends, my racing team, Matt (Kaulig) and Chris (Rice) especially, they see how much I have care about that, how much work and frustration when it doesn’t go well and what I put on my shoulders to not let everyone down. So I think the emotions if it were to happen would just be something that I probably can’t even channel and put into action. It would be all over the place in terms of happiness and relief and just incredible, just the kind of thing you dream about.

So I hope I get to experience that. It would make me feel full circle and a highlight, especially going back to the Xfinity Championship winning Cup for Matt Kaulig and Chris Rice and all the men and women who are part of a Celsius racing team have been part of that team . for a long time and was a sponsor. Now, in the last few years, we’ve done some really cool things, winning races together and sharing all of that. So to be able to put them in Victory Lane or Championship Lane with (Celsius) on the car would be super special. But I can’t afford to go for it until it happens. So there’s a lot of work to do and that’s what I’m focusing on.

You have two more races and then it’s back to the Cup series. How do you feel about next year’s leap?

AJ Almendinger: Yeah, yeah, I mean I really enjoy driving the Cup cars. You want to race against the best every weekend, and I think that’s a different mindset than what we do in Xfinity. The ultimate goal is always to win, and if you’re showing up now with that as the ultimate goal, you probably shouldn’t be showing up.

But having said that, the Cup side is really difficult. You compete against the best of the best teams, the best drivers. Where we are now, our cars are, I think, 29th and 33rd. So that just shows the amount of work we have to do to kind of get into that top 15, top 20 level. But you know what , if I didn’t feel like we could do that, I probably wouldn’t go to the Cup. And I really feel like we can.

So I think that’s the mindset is to take our team to kind of a consistent top 20 team. We know in places like road courses and certain racetracks that we can go to be the best and run in the top five , maybe win the race and then focus on the weaknesses and try to make them a little bit better than where they are. right now. I think if we do that, we can go top 20 and maybe have a chance to make the playoffs. So I think that’s what I’m looking forward to next year is that challenge and I can’t wait to do it.