AJ Allmendinger and Ty Dillon will be returning as NASCAR Cup Series competitors for Kaulig Racing that will be fielding Dodges for the 2027 season.
The news comes four days after Kaulig Racing was revealed to be switching manufacturers from Chevrolet to Dodge in 2027, thus bringing Dodge back as a manufacturer in the Cup Series division for the first time in 15 years. As part of Kaulig Racing’s flagship team partnership with Dodge, Dillon and Allmendinger will continue to pilot the organization’s Nos. 10 and 16 entries on a full-time basis next season.
“We just celebrated the 10th anniversary of Kaulig Racing, and I have never been more confident and excited about our future,” Matt Kaulig, Kaulig Racing’s founder and owner, said. “This is a landmark moment for our organization, our partners and the Dodge brand. From our humble beginnings to being named the anchor team for the fifth-largest automaker in the world is an incredible honor and a challenge our team is ready to face.”
Kaulig Racing debuted in 2016 and in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series division, a series in which the organization competed through the conclusion of the 2025 season, before expanding to the Cup Series division in 2020. The organization spent the next two seasons competing in the Cup level on a part-time basis before debuting as a full-time Cup program with two entries in 2022, in which it remains as a full two-car program while also fielding a third part-time Cup entry from 2023 to 2025.
This season, the organization partnered with Stellantis and fielded five RAM 1500 entries in the Craftsman Truck Series division. The first-year campaign in the Truck division was a part of Kaulig’s and Stellantis’ efforts to bring Dodge back into NASCAR competition as the latter duo prepare to elevate the effort to the ultimate height within NASCAR’s premier series’ competition in 2027.
“Bringing Dodge back to the NASCAR Cup Series is a massive responsibility and one we don’t take lightly,” Chris Rice, Kaulig Racing’s CEO, said. “We knew we needed to put proven veterans behind the wheel to build this program, and no one knows Kaulig Racing better than AJ and Ty. We are introducing a lot of new parts, pieces and variables into our program, so being able to keep some consistency behind the wheel was important for our inaugural season with Dodge. I look at 2027 like we are pouring the foundation for our future.”
Allmendinger, an accomplished motorsports competitor and NASCAR veteran from Los Gatos, California, first joined Kaulig Racing for two part-time O’Reilly campaigns in 2019 and 2020, where he notched three victories, before competing on a full-time basis for the organization in 2021. Over the next two seasons, he won an additional 10 events, finished in the top-five mark in the final standings and made the Championship 4 round in 2021. During the latter season, Allmendinger also recorded Kaulig’s first Cup career victory at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course.
Allmendinger then went full-time Cup racing with Kaulig in 2023, where he scored his third and latest Cup victory at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course. After returning to the O’Reilly division for a full-time campaign in 2024, he has since moved back up to full-time Cup racing at Kaulig, beginning in 2025. Allmendinger is currently ranked in 25th place in the 2026 standings with a single top-five result, four top-10 results, nine laps led and an average-finishing result of 21.7.
To date, Allmendinger stands as Kaulig Racing’s winningest competitor at 19 victories (17 in O’Reilly and two in Cup) as he continues his pursuit for additional victories and his first NASCAR championship. Next season will mark a reunion between Allmendinger and Dodge, with the former having piloted the manufacturer for his first eight O’Reilly career starts (2007-08) and a combined 35 starts between two Cup seasons (20 with Richard Petty Motorsports in 2009 & 15 with Team Penske in 2012).
“Kaulig Racing has been my home for years, and the belief Matt Kaulig and Chris Rice have placed in me means everything,” Allmendinger said. “To be chosen to help bring Dodge back to the NASCAR Cup Series is special for me. I’ve been fortunate throughout my career to drive a lot of different race cars, but being on the front lines of building a new OEM program with a brand as iconic as Dodge is a unique challenge. We’re building something special here, and I can’t wait to get to work in 2027.”
Dillon, the 2011 ARCA Menards Series champion and race winner across the Truck and O’Reilly divisions from Welcome, North Carolina, first drove for Kaulig as a part-time Cup competitor in 2024, where he made five starts, before he became a full-time competitor in 2025. This past season, he recorded a single top-10 result, that being an eighth-place run at EchoPark Speedway, along with an average-finishing result of 24.6. He also competed for the inaugural In-Season Tournament Challenge title during the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where he settled in the runner-up spot behind Ty Gibbs.
This season, Dillon is ranked in 34th place in the standings with an average-finishing result of 25.9. Next season will mark his first time competing in Dodge across NASCAR’s top-three national touring series as he continues his bid for his first victory and championship in the Cup division.
“Opportunities like this don’t come around often in a driver’s career,” Dillon said. “To extend my time with Kaulig Racing and be part of Dodge’s return to the Cup Series is a dream scenario. Matt and Chris have built a world-class culture here, and the commitment everyone is putting into this transition is unmatched. Dodge has a rich winning history in stock car racing, and our entire organization is focused on honoring that heritage when we hit the track in 2027.”
To date, Kaulig Racing has achieved two victories through a combined 378 starts in the Cup Series division, 27 victories through 732 O’Reilly Auto Parts Series starts and 18 top-10 results through 120 Craftsman Truck Series starts as the organization remains in pursuit of its first NASCAR championship.
Kaulig Racing’s Truck Series driver lineup will be revealed at a later date. The organization’s Dodge race car and the brand’s 2027 livery will also be revealed during the 59th running of the Snowball Derby and The Dodge Sno-Brawl on December 4.
The 2027 NASCAR Cup Series season for Kaulig Racing is scheduled to commence at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, in February 2027. The series will run the non-points Wheatley Vodka Clash on February 13 followed by the 69th running of the Daytona 500 on February 21.
