The NASCAR Cup Series drivers will be challenged by the twists and turns of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course this weekend in the Verizon 200 at the Brickyard (Aug. 13 at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBC. Several drivers are still looking for their first win this season, including Hendrick Motorsport’s Chase Elliott who leads all active drivers in road course wins with seven. Elliott is already considered one of the early favorites for this weekend but keep an eye on the two most recent winners on road courses in the series, Shane van Gisbergen (Chicago) and current points leader Martin Truex Jr. (Sonoma), as both will most certainly be in the mix as well.

This weekend there are 14 former road course winners entered in this weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Indianapolis.

Active Road Course Winners (14)	Total Wins	Sonoma	WGI	Charlotte	Daytona	Indy	COTA	Road America	Chicago
Chase Elliott	7	0	2	2	1	0	1	1	0
Martin Truex Jr	5	4	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Kyle Busch	4	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	0
Kyle Larson	4	1	2	1	0	0	0	0	0
Tyler Reddick	3	0	0	0	0	1	1	1	0
Kevin Harvick	2	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
AJ Allmendinger	2	0	1	0	0	1	0	0	0
Christopher Bell	2	0	0	1	1	0	0	0	0
Joey Logano	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Ryan Blaney	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0
Denny Hamlin	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Daniel Suárez	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Ross Chastain	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0
Shane van Gisbergen	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1

The NASCAR Cup Series has competed on three road courses this season so far, with 23XI Racing’s Tyler Reddick winning at Austin (COTA), Truex winning at Sonoma and van Gisbergen at Chicago.

If Chase Elliott were to win this weekend, he would tie NASCAR Hall of Famer Tony Stewart (eight road course wins) for second on the NASCAR Cup Series all-time road course wins list, behind only NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon with nine road course victories.

Stacked Field: ‘Road Aces’ from different series join NASCAR at Indianapolis

Looking at this weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series entry list, there are some names you don’t often see but are definitely well known in the racing community – Shane van Gisbergen, Mike Rockenfeller, Kamui Kobayashi, Brodie Kostecki, Andy Lally and Jenson Button are entered in the Verizon 200 at the Brickyard on Sunday.

Trackhouse Racing’s Shane van Gisbergen, the 34-year-old from Auckland, New Zealand, became a household name in American motorsports after grabbing the victory at the inaugural Chicago Street Race in his very first NASCAR Cup Series start. Gisbergen with crew chief Darian Grubb will be back this weekend with the Trackhouse Project91 team. Gisbergen is a three-time Australian V8 Supercar Champion.

“This whole NASCAR experience has been a dream come true,” van Gisbergen said recalling the rainy Chicago race. “I can’t wait to get to America then Indy. It will certainly be different than the Chicago Street Course. I’ll need to get up to speed quickly, but we plan a lot of simulator time and I know (No. 91 Crew Chief) Darian (Grubb) will be thoroughly prepared for Indy.”

Also announced this week, two-time Le Mans winner, Mike Rockenfeller will be driving the No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet in place of a suspended Noah Gragson. The 38-year-old from Altnau, Switzerland, will be making his third career NASCAR Cup Series start this weekend. In his first two series starts he finished 30th at Watkins Glen and 29th at the Charlotte Roval. Rockenfeller did most of the car development for NASCAR and Hendrick Motorsports on the Garage 56 Project that competed at Le Mans earlier this year.

Much like Trackhouse Racing, 23XI Racing will be fielding a third car this weekend and piloting the No. 67 Toyota will be Kamui Kobayashi from Amagasaki, Japan. The 35-year-old former Formula 1 driver and IMSA Sports Car competitor will be attempting to make his NASCAR Cup Series debut this weekend at Indianapolis. Kobayashi will be working with crew chief Eric Phillips this weekend.

Richard Childress Racing will also field a third car this weekend, joining the RCR fold will be the No. 33 Chevrolet and Australian V8 Supercar driver Brodie Kostecki.

“I am thrilled to be making my NASCAR Cup Series debut at the Brickyard,” Kostecki said. “It’s an honor to compete at such an iconic venue and against some of the biggest names in motorsports. I’m incredibly grateful to RCR for giving me this opportunity, and I’m determined to make the most of it.”

Kostecki, from Perth in Western Australia, is not completely foreign to racing in the states, he made 16 starts in what is now called the ARCA Menards Series East from 2013-14 posting two poles (Iowa, Watkins Glen) and a best finish of fifth (Dover).

One team stacking their roster this weekend is Rick Ware Racing, who has locked in two road aces for Indianapolis in former NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year and IMSA Sports Car winner Andy Lally, and Formula 1 World Champion (2009) Jenson Button.

Button will pilot the Rick Ware Racing No. 15 Chevrolet this weekend at Indianapolis and Lally will jump behind the wheel of the No. 51. Button, from England, also participated in the Garage 56 Project and this weekend will be his third career series start in the Cup Series. In his first two appearances earlier this season, he put up an 18th-place finish at Austin and a 21st at Chicago. Lally will also be making his third start of the season this weekend, in his first two starts he finished 35th (Sonoma) and 26th (Chicago).