Kaulig Racing Weekly Preview | Sonoma Raceway

July 9, 2025

Homecoming for Allmendinger:

AJ Allmendinger returns to his home state and home track of Sonoma Raceway for the first time since being inducted into the West Coast Stock Car/Motorsports Hall of Fame earlier this year. Kaulig Racing Team President Chris Rice introduced Allmendinger for his induction into the Class of 2025. Throughout his career, Allmendinger has left his mark in several racing disciplines, including open wheel, Champ Car and IndyCar, IMSA and sports cars, and still remains a highly competitive racer in NASCAR.

The NASCAR Foundation License to Drive Track Laps at Daytona:

On Wednesday, July 23rd, fans have the opportunity to drive their vehicle on track at Daytona International Speedway with a $50 donation to The NASCAR Foundation. Those who register before July 14th will be entered in a raffle to win a pace car ride with Kaulig Racing NASCAR Cup Series driver, AJ Allmendinger. For more details on the event, click here.

At Sonoma Raceway:

Shane van Gisbergen earned Kaulig Racing’s first NASCAR Xfinity Series victory at the track, winning after leading 32 laps and earning the pole in 2024. In 2023, during the series’ first trip to Sonoma, AJ Allmendinger drove to a second-place finish after qualifying within the top five and leading two laps.
Kaulig Racing has made six NASCAR Cup Series starts at Sonoma Raceway, earning two top-10 finishes.

32 Drivers. 5 Races. $1 Million on the Line.

The In-Season Challenge includes five rounds at five tracks.
- Round 1: EchoPark Speedway
- Round 2: Chicago Street Course
- Round 3: Sonoma Raceway
- Round 4: Dover Motor Speedway
- Championship Round: Indianapolis Motor Speedway – The winner walks away with $1 Million!
In Challenge Round 2, Ty Dillon advanced over Brad Keselowski, and AJ Allmendinger was eliminated by Ty Gibbs.
For Challenge Round 3, in a bracket format, eight drivers compete head-to-head with the highest finisher advancing to Challenge Round 4 at Dover Motor Speedway.
For Kaulig Racing, Ty Dillon will take on Alex Bowman for the third round at Sonoma Raceway.

10 Team Info
Crew Chief: Andrew Dickeson
Partner: Sea Best

Ty Dillon, No. 10 Sea Best Camaro ZL1

Sea Best: Sea Best will serve as the primary partner of the No. 10 Chevrolet at Sonoma Raceway this weekend with Ty Dillon and Kaulig Racing. Sea Best proudly serves as the flagship brand of Beaver Street Fisheries, a family-owned and operated company based in Jacksonville, Florida. As one of the nation’s largest importers, manufacturers, and distributors of seafood and meat, the Sea Best brand is synonymous with premium-quality seafood. Its product lineup includes a wide range of frozen fish fillets—such as ahi tuna, mahi-mahi, cod, and catfish—along with shrimp, scallops, and lobster.

Meet Ty Dillon:
- Sunday, July 13
  - Ty Dillon will be at the Chevrolet merchandise hauler from 9:45 – 10:15 a.m. PT to meet fans and sign autographs on Sunday, July 13.

At Sonoma Raceway:

Ty Dillon will make his sixth Cup Series start at Sonoma Raceway this Sunday for the 20th race of the 2025 season. In his previous five starts at the track, Dillon’s best finish is 23rd in 2022 and 2023.
In addition to his Cup Series starts, Dillon has one Xfinity Series start in 2023 where he finished 23rd.
With his 20th-place finish on the Chicago Street Course, Dillon advanced to the third round of the In-Season Challenge. Dillon will now face Alex Bowman this Sunday at Sonoma Raceway.

“I’m looking forward to getting to Sonoma this weekend, a track where I have a lot of confidence going to. I’ve been in the sim this week and working with my teammate AJ [Allmendinger], one of the best in the business, to try to learn as much as I can to be prepared this weekend. I didn’t race on the track last year, so this will be the first year for me on the new pavement which will bring its own challenges, but I’m looking forward to taking advantage of this weekend and having a strong run.”
– Ty Dillon on Sonoma Raceway

16 Team Info
Crew Chief: Trent Owens
Partner: Big Sipz

AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Big Sipz Camaro ZL1

Big Sipz: Big Sipz, a wine-based ready-to-drink cocktail at 16% alcohol-by-volume, will join Kaulig Racing and be featured on the No. 16 Chevrolet driven by road racing ace, AJ Allmendinger, during the July 13 NASCAR Cup Series race at Sonoma Raceway. Big Sipz, one of the fastest growing RTD brands in the country, offers a variety of bold flavors, including margaritas, fruit punch and ‘Merica flavored wine-based cocktails, and is available in many retail and convenient store locations across the country. In addition to Big Sipz executives, Kaulig Racing and AJ Allmendinger will be hosting globally recognized hip-hop artist and influencer, Waka Flocka.

At Sonoma Raceway:

AJ Allmendinger has earned three top-10 finishes at his home track of Sonoma Raceway. In the last two seasons with Kaulig Racing, Allmendinger has finished sixth.
Allmendinger heads to Sonoma Raceway after earning his best finish of sixth place on the Chicago Street Course.

“Sonoma’s always a very important race to me, being what I consider my home race. Every year I have a lot of family and friends come out, and this year we’re bringing a new sponsor, Big Sipz. It’ll be a busy weekend, but it’s always a lot of fun. I love the racetrack; it would mean the world to me to be able to have an opportunity to win a race there. In the past, we’ve been very competitive, and we’ll continue building on what we’ve learned so far with our road course program. I’m working hard to go out there at my best and put together a solid weekend for our team.”
– AJ Allmendinger on Sonoma Raceway

10 Team Info
Crew Chief: Kevin Walter
Partner: Champion Container

Daniel Dye, No. 10 Champion Container Chevrolet

Champion Container: Champion Container, a family-owned business specializing in industrial packaging and container solutions, will be onboard Dye’s No. 10 Chevrolet for his Sonoma Raceway debut in the the Pit Boss/FoodMaxx 250.

At Sonoma Raceway:

Daniel Dye will make his first start at Sonoma Raceway in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, his first-ever race in the state of California.
So far in the 2025 season, he has recorded eight top-10 finishes.

“Sonoma is a track I’ve always looked forward to going to; this will be my first time ever racing in California. This track is really different from other road courses we go to. It’s a pretty technically demanding track with the hairpin turns and hills, but it’s a challenge I’m looking forward to taking on for the first time.”
– Daniel Dye on Sonoma Raceway

11 Team Info
Crew Chief: Eddie Pardue
Partner: Alloy Employer Services

Josh Williams, No. 11 Alloy Employer Services Chevrolet

Alloy Employer Services: Based in Columbus, Ohio, Alloy Employer Services helps a range of clients, from small businesses to large employers. Industries served include healthcare, transportation, manufacturing, maintenance, hospitality, and construction. Alloy’s Midwest roots have led to national reach, serving clients with workers nationwide because of a love to design, build and innovate in our industry. Alloy Employer Services is a Fortune-HR, LLC company.

At Sonoma Raceway:

Josh Williams has made two starts at Sonoma Raceway, with his best qualifying position there coming in 2023 (22nd).
After starting in 28th at Sonoma in 2024, Williams rolled his way into 10th place on speed at the start of Stage 2 before being collected in a multi-car wreck, ending the No. 11 Chevy’s day.
Williams scored an 11th-place finish at the Chicago Street Course last weekend, his best result on a road course in 2025.

“I’ve always enjoyed road course racing. I don’t exactly know why, but it feels like road courses are some of my better track [types]. Sonoma, we haven’t had really good luck at yet. We were fast in the race last year until that mess happened later on, so hopefully we can show that again this weekend… without the mess!”
– Josh Williams on Sonoma

16 Team Info
Crew Chief: Alex Yontz
Partner: LeafFilter Gutter Protection

Christian Eckes, No. 16 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet

LeafFilter Gutter Protection: Christian Eckes and LeafFilter Gutter Protection will team up once again for the Pit Boss/FoodMaxx 250. LeafFilter is America’s #1 rated gutter protection system trusted by more than a million homeowners. LeafFilter’s patented technology keeps gutters free of debris and is backed by a lifetime transferable warranty.

At Sonoma Raceway:

Christian Eckes will make his first start at Sonoma Raceway in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
He previously made one start at Sonoma in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.
So far in the 2025 season, Eckes has earned three top fives and seven top-10 finishes.

“Sonoma is one of my favorite places. Although Chicago is a much different track, any road course experience helps, especially back-to-back, to help get into a rhythm. The track grip at Sonoma made it really fun there the last time I raced there, but I haven’t been on the new pavement, so I’m looking forward to getting on track for practice.”
– Christian Eckes on Sonoma Raceway

Meet the Kaulig Racing Drivers

Sunday, July 13
- Ty Dillon will be at the Chevrolet merchandise hauler from 9:45 – 10:15 a.m. PT to meet fans and sign autographs on Sunday, July 13.