ELKHART LAKE, WIS. (AP) - Several years ago, race car driver AJ Allmendinger did a media appearance at a bar near Lambeau Field and talked excitedly about how much he enjoyed being so close to the home of his favorite team, the Green Bay Packers.
Back in the land of cheese for this weekend’s NASCAR Nationwide series race at Road America, Allmendinger now wants to set the record straight.
Asked casually about his Packers fandom on Friday, Allmendinger responded purposefully: “I’m a Brett Favre fan.”
That’s a pretty significant distinction in these parts, given the level of angst that still lingers among some fans about the ugly divorce between one of the NFL’s most popular teams and one of its best and most recognizable players.
“Yeah, exactly,” Allmendinger said. “So just call it as it is.”
Favre and the Packers parted ways during the tumultuous summer of 2008, when Favre came out of his eyeroll-inducing “retirement” and was traded to the New York Jets _ and eventually ended up playing for the detested Minnesota Vikings.
The episode was a tough test for the Packers’ front office, but they got the best of it in the end: Green Bay won a Super Bowl in 2011 as Aaron Rodgers developed into an MVP.
And while the split might still be on Allmendinger’s mind, there actually seems to be some level of detente developing between Favre and the Packers. A public reconciliation now seems likely in the foreseeable future, including the possibility of the Packers retiring Favre’s famed No. 4 jersey.
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