F1 World Champ Jenson Button excited to be back at Brickyard

SPEEDWAY, Ind. (WISH) — Former Formula One driver Jenson Button returns to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend in a very different kind of car. Button will race in the No. 15 Mobil 1 Ford Mustang for Rick Ware Racing with support from Stewart-Haas Racing in Sunday’s Verizon 200.

Button joined News 8’s Angela Moryan live on WISH-TV Saturday morning before NASCAR Cup Series practice.

This will be Button’s third NASCAR Cup Series race this season, after he made his debut at Circuit of the Americas’ Texas Grand Prix in March. There, he finished 18th.

He then went on to finish 21st on NASCAR’s brand new street circuit in Chicago July 2.

Button last raced at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2007, the final year Formula One raced at IMS. Returning to the Brickyard has brought back many fond memories for Button — even from his rookie season when he crashed in the first lap and still returned to the race.

Button’s known worldwide for his successful Formula One career. He won the F1 World Championship in 2009 — nine years into his F1 driving career. He drove his last F1 race in Monaco back in 2017, which was the only race he drove that year.

Since then, he dominated the Super GT series, the top level sports car series in Japan. He won that championship his first year driving Super GT full-time in 2018.

Button hasn’t had a full-time ride since 2019, but he’s considering coming back full-time in 2024 — whether that be for the World Endurance Championship or IMSA SportsCar Championship.

The NASCAR Cup Series Verizon 200 is scheduled to go green Sunday at 2:30 p.m. Button will get his first taste of the IMS Road Course in a stock car Saturday afternoon when the Cup Series drivers qualify for Sunday’s race.