Allmendinger pleads no contest to DWI charge

A.J. Allmendinger has pleaded no contest to the charges of DWI in North Carolina District Court and received a 60-day suspended sentence, 18 months unsupervised probation, 24 hours of community service and $100 fine plus court costs.

Mooresville, N.C., police said Allmendinger, who drives for Richard Petty Motorsports, failed a field sobriety test after he was pulled over on Oct. 29. Allmendinger reportedly blew a .08 on a Breathalyzer test.

Allmendinger

Allmendinger said he had drinks with dinner and made a mistake in driving afterward.

"I honestly felt fine, but I obviously should have erred more on the side of caution, particularly given what I do for a living," Allmendinger said. "It was a bad judgment call and I apologize for that."

NASCAR placed Allmendinger on probation until Dec. 31, citing a violation of Section 12-1 (actions detrimental to stock car racing) of the 2009 NASCAR rule book. RPM also placed Allmendinger on probation through the end of the 2010 racing season and fined him $10,000, which would be donated to charity.

Petty routinely shunned alcohol sponsorship, and refused to allow his teams to participate in NASCAR's second-tier series when it was sponsored by Busch.

"If anything good can come of this, then hopefully I can be an example of being more aware of drinking responsibly and if even if you feel fine, take a cab, call a friend," Allmendinger said after the incident. "Just don't risk it. I will do my best to make it right and use this to learn myself and hopefully educate others."

Related: Allmendinger arrested for DWI after failed field test