AJ Allmendinger's parents mortgaged their house three times to keep his dream alive, a sacrifice that defines his vision as a father.

AJ Allmendinger He recently spoke about the sacrifices his parents had to make when he was growing up to keep his racing dreams intact. The #16 driver, father of a two-year-old son, Aero, also spoke about how his personal experiences have shaped him as a parent.

The Kaulig Racing driver spoke with motorsports expert Jeff Gluck for a “12 Questions” interview via The Athletic. Gluck mentioned how the California native's childhood shaped him into who he is today. Allmendinger's mother was a nurse, while his father was a carpet layer, and he mortgaged his house three times to help his racing career.

Gluck noted that Aero, born in September 2023, though has a very different upbringing than AJ did due to his status as a longtime NASCAR Cup Series driver. When asked how he plans to teach Aero the qualities that are important to him, AJ Allmendinger said he has no intention of pushing his son to compete if he doesn't want to. Whatever Aero wants to do, AJ wants him to give it his best.

Here's what AJ Allmendinger said via The Athletic:

“My parents always told me they would do anything they could for me as long as I continued to show that I wanted to do it. It was always a family thing; I'm named after AJ Foyt, so my dad obviously loved (racing). My mom loved it, too, but she was the quieter person. I'm never going to force him to race cars or play golf, he chooses, put everything you've got into it. If you're not going to, there's no point in even doing that. Part of me that still does this now is trying to make sure we never have to worry about mortgaging things. But I just want whatever it is to go 100 percent. If you don't, there's no point in even trying.”

AJ Allmendinger aims to end winless drought in remaining 2025 NASCAR Cup races

With four races remaining in 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season, AJ Allmendinger will look to end a winless drought that dates back to the Charlotte Roval in October 2023. The three-time Cup winner is currently 25th in the points standings amid his return to Cup campaign.

Allmendinger has recorded two top fives this season with an average score of 20.2. The 44-year-old returned to the full-time Cup Series season after spending last season in the Xfinity Series full-time. He is scheduled to return to Kaulig Racing full-time in 2026.