Shane van Gisbergen to get another NASCAR Cup Series start after Chicago triumph

CONCORD, N.C. (AP) — Shane van Gisbergen will put his perfect NASCAR Cup Series mark on the line on the road course at Indianapolis.

The three-time Supercars champion, who triumphed earlier this month in the inaugural Chicago street race in his first career start, will be back in the No. 91 car for Trackhouse Racing when the series heads to Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Aug. 13.

Van Gisbergen will be joined in the field by Supercars star Brodie Kostecki, who will make his Cup Series debut with Richard Childress Racing, and sports car standout Kamui Kobayashi, who will make his debut with 23XI Racing.

Van Gisbergen is part of Trackhouse’s Project91, which was designed to lure elite drivers from different backgrounds in one-off rides in NASCAR. But while the road-racing ace from New Zealand had nearly 80 wins during his career in Australia, few expected him to become the first driver since Johnny Rutherford in 1963 to win his first Cup Series start on July 2 in Chicago.

Trackhouse Racing founder Justin Marks said he began thinking about bringing van Gisbergen back to NASCAR as soon as the checkered flag fell on his win. Van Gisbergen had returned to Australia in the days afterward.

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