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4 drivers to watch at Circuit of the Americas

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Are road course ringers making a comeback? It sure seems that way as the Cup Series heads to Circuit of the Americas for the first road course race of 2023.

Featured in the field this weekend are Formula One World Champions Kimi Raikkonen and Jenson Button, seven-time Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson, and three-time IMSA champion Jordan Taylor in part-time roles.

It may not be the same as the early 2000s which saw some full-time drivers step aside for road courses, but we've certainly seen an influx of road course-specific drivers coming back with the Next-Gen car.

This Sunday's race will be NASCAR's first without pre-determined cautions since 2016. NASCAR has opted to award stage points without throwing the yellow flag for road course races this season in hopes of creating more opportunities for varying strategies.

With a host of part-time drivers and a significant rule change, there are plenty of storylines to follow on Sunday in Texas. Here are four drivers to watch this weekend at Circuit of the Americas.

Ross Chastain

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Trackhouse burst onto the scene this time last year when Ross Chastain captured his first Cup Series win at Circuit of the Americas.

Chastain led the most laps of the race - 31 of 69 - and wasn't afraid to use contact on the final lap to ensure he captured the checkered flag over A.J. Allmendinger and Alex Bowman.

Trackhouse was arguably the most consistent team across the road courses in 2022. At nearly each road course race, both Chastain and his teammate Daniel Suarez were in the mix within the top 10. It remains one of just two track types Trackhouse has won at, in addition to the superspeedway of Talladega.

Chastain's sudden road course success isn't a fluke, either. In his lone season with Chip Ganassi Racing in 2021, Chastain finished fourth at Circuit of the Americas and had two other top-10 finishes at road courses.

Chastain started 2023 hot but has failed to convert strong runs into top-10 finishes in three consecutive races. Additionally, Trackhouse has still yet to go to victory lane at a traditional oval.

That means the onus for Trackhouse is still to capitalize on these specialized venues. They were consistently among the fastest in the Cup Series at this track type last year, and there's no reason to doubt their ability to bring that level of speed again.

A.J. Allmendinger

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If Kaulig Racing is to make the Cup Series playoffs for the first time in 2023, it will likely have to come on the back of an A.J. Allmendinger win on a road course.

Allmendinger is a road course ringer no longer as he's back to full-time racing in the Cup Series. The Los Gatos, California native raced a part-time schedule in the Cup Series for the past two seasons. In that span, Allmendinger won the inaugural road course race at Indianapolis in 2021 and has finished top 10 in five other road course races.

The 41-year-old chased down Ross Chastain on the final lap at Circuit of the Americas last year, only to be wrecked into Alex Bowman on the penultimate corner.

NASCAR's rule change to forgo cautions at the end of the stages at tracks such as COTA should play into Allmendinger's strengths. His ability to gain spots over long green-flag runs will be even more valuable this season as he'll be able to keep that track position, rather than having to give it all up at the end of each stage.

Factor in Allmendinger's consistent contention on road courses, success on long runs, and motivation to right the wrong of last year's race, and the No. 16 Chevrolet will be mightily tough to beat this weekend.

Kyle Busch

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Kyle Busch's road course results in 2022 were frankly abysmal, but make no mistake, he's a contender this weekend at Circuit of the Americas.

Toyota struggled on road courses last year, evident in Busch's 22.2 average finishing position across the six road course races in 2022. Though he finished strong with a third-place run at the Charlotte Roval, Busch's average position throughout that race was much lower at 15.0.

A move to Chevrolet sparks confidence in Busch's ability to become a threat for road course wins again. Not only has Chevrolet dominated on this track type, winning five of six road course races last year, but Busch is also with a team that won two of them.

Tyler Reddick's success last year bodes well for Busch to have a resurgent campaign at the road courses. Reddick had an average running position within the top five spots at four road course races in 2022, including Circuit of the Americas.

Busch's last win at a road course in the Cup Series was way back at Sonoma in 2015. He'll have a strong chance to break that drought this season, beginning at Circuit of the Americas.

Jordan Taylor

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No road course ringer has a better chance of upsetting the field of regulars than Jordan Taylor on Sunday.

Taylor's resume speaks for itself. Three-time IMSA class champion. 24 IMSA wins, including two overall victories at Daytona. And he's a class winner at the 2015 24 Hours of Le Mans.

On top of his immense success in sports car racing, Taylor has been embedded in Hendrick Motorsports' Garage 56 entry for the 2023 24 Hours of Le Mans. Though he isn't slated to drive the car in France, Taylor has operated as a driver coach with the entry and has gained experience in the Next-Gen car through testing.

The No. 9 Chevrolet has been one of the most consistent threats on road courses in recent years with Chase Elliott behind the wheel. Taylor will have a car that is legitimately capable of winning Sunday's race, something that can't usually be said for road course ringers.

“To think I tried for so many years just to do any road course race – for 10 years probably – and I’ve been close to doing Xfinity races and truck races, never even tried Cup and now for this to happen with a top Cup team, it’s just ridiculous,” Taylor said of his upcoming NASCAR debut, according to Racing America's Holly Cain.

The 31-year-old is in the prime of his career and is getting the opportunity of a lifetime. Expect Taylor to be fast and contend this weekend.

Statistics via FRCS, Racing Reference.

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