The newest member of the Allmendinger family made the trip to Richmond to cheer on the No. 84 and keep dad company. Her name is Misty, a 10-week-old yellow Labrador.

"I'm still way too immature to have a kid, so we're testing out the dog first and see how that goes," AJ said.

The Richmond weekend is Misty's first taste of life on the NASCAR trail. While AJ was testing with Red Bull Racing Team on Monday at Iowa Speedway, Lynne Allmendinger picked up Misty in Daytona Beach, Fla. Misty was recently filming the K-9 comedy "Marley & Me," starring Jennifer Anniston and Owen Wilson, in Miami.

"We've talked about a dog ever since the middle of last year," AJ said. "We've thought about what we'll do on the weekends we can't take her, but we've got friends that stay here and they have doggie spas and stuff.

"I'm thinking Jay (Frye, general manager and VP) won't be cool about a dog barking on the plane."

AJ and teammate Brian Vickers have two hours of practice (11 a.m. ET) before today's qualifying session at 5:40 p.m. The Dan Lowry 400 is an impound race, so it's straight into Saturday night's green flag (7:30 p.m., Fox).