This weekend marks the first road course race of the season for the NASCAR Cup, Xfinity and Craftsman Truck Series at Circuit of The Americas in Austin, Texas.
While road course “ringers” were prominent during the early 2000s, it’s been a handful of years since a large number of outsiders entered the fray.
However, with the introduction of the Cup Series’ Next Gen race car, it’s allowed for more opportunities for global stars such as Supercars champion Shane van Gisbergen and Formula 1 champions Jenson Button and Kimi Raikkonen to give NASCAR a shot.
Here’s a list of road course specialists who are set to take on the 3.41-mile permanent road course:
Cup Series
A.J. Allmendinger
Yes, A.J. Allmendinger has 432 starts in the Cup Series, however his name is notable due to running a part-time schedule in Cup while contesting a full Xfinity Series slate with Kaulig Racing.
The 2014 Cup Series winner at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) Int’l and 2021 winner at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course has a stout résumé at COTA, which includes two wins in the Xfinity Series and a fifth-place finish in the Cup Series in 2021.
Shane van Gisbergen
Sunday’s Cup Series race will be SVG’s third start in a Cup Series car, and first of the season. Racing a full schedule in the Xfinity Series with Kaulig Racing, van Gisbergen will pilot the team’s No. 16 Chevrolet.
Van Gisbergen burst onto the NASCAR scene after his win in the inaugural Chicago Street Race last summer, which was his first start. The New Zealander also earned a 10th-place finish at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course last year.
Kamui Kobayashi
Kamui Kobayashi will embark on his second career Cup Series start this weekend. Last year, the sports car racing star piloted a 23XI Racing entry at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, where he finished 33rd.
This time around, the 2021 24 Hours of Le Mans overall winner feels better prepared as he’s competed at COTA in both a Formula 1 car and FIA World Endurance Championship sports car.
Xfinity Series
Ed Jones
Ed Jones will make his Xfinity Series debut with Sam Hunt Racing at COTA.
Jones, a former NTT IndyCar Series driver for Chip Ganassi Racing, has one previous start at the 20-turn road course when he competed in the Truck Series last year.
The 29-year-old finished 36th after a suspension issue forced him out of the race.
Sage Karam
Another former IndyCar Series driver will be competing in the Xfinity Series race at COTA. Sage Karam, who is looking to make a career in NASCAR, will look to make his 28th career start with the series.
Wheeling the No. 26 for Sam Hunt Racing, Karam will look to improve on his 16th-place finish in last year’s event at COTA.
Notably, Karam earned a career-best finish of fourth at Wisconsin’s Road America last year.
Truck Series
Jack Hawksworth
Fresh off his win in the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Series’ GTD PRO category at the 12 Hours of Sebring, Jack Hawksworth will make his Truck Series debut aboard Tricon Garage’s No. 1 Toyota.
Hawksworth competed in 49 IndyCar Series races before making the switch to full-time sports car racing.
The 33-year-old British driver has one Xfinity Series start under his belt, which came at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in 2019. Hawksworth started second and finished 15th in the race.
Connor Zilisch
Perhaps racing’s next big talent, Connor Zilisch, will make his first NASCAR start on Saturday with Spire Motorsports in the No. 7 Chevrolet.
While he’s set to contest a partial Xfinity Series slate later this year with JR Motorsports, the 17-year-old sets his sights on COTA.
Zilisch co-drove Era Motorsports’ LMP2 entry to victory in the 12 Hours of Sebring last week and helped the team win the Rolex 24 At Daytona in February.