BROWNSBURG, Ind. — While much of the attention this week will be focused on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Brownsburg's Indianapolis Raceway Park is set to host two races on Friday, Aug. 11.
The ARCA Menards Series and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series return to IRP for their second year together, with the ARCA race scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. and the Truck race following at 9 p.m.
A number of Hoosier racers will be participating in both races. Here is a list of the local racers that fans can watch and a little bit about their careers:
Greg Van Alst
Anderson native Greg Van Alst, 42, will be pulling double duty on Friday. He is set to drive in both the ARCA and Truck race. He made headlines when he won the season-opening ARCA race at Daytona. The win followed his fifth-place finish in the ARCA points standings in 2022. The Truck race will be Van Alst's first career start in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. He'll be racing for his own team in the ARCA race before piloting the No. 20 truck for Young's Motorsports in the Truck race.
Van Alst made two starts in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for Alpha Prime Racing earlier in July. He finished 38th in both races. He scored a seventh place finish the last time the ARCA Menards Series made a stop in Indiana at the October 2022 race at Salem Speedway.
Brayton Laster
Nicknamed "The Pizza Man," Greenwood's Brayton Laster, 20, is set to compete in the ARCA Menards Series race, driving the No. 01 Chevrolet for Fast Track Racing. Laster has been racing at the Indianapolis Speedrome for most of his early career. He made his ARCA debut in 2022 at the season opening race at Daytona, where he finished 13th driving for Mullins Racing.
Laster is recognizable by his pizza-themed helmet that he wears on race day due to his love of pizza. He is always looking for the best pizza he can find during his racing travels.
Zachary Tinkle
Speedway's Zachary Tinkle, 21, will race his fifth ARCA Menards Series race this Friday in the No. 11 Chevrolet for Fast Track Racing. Tinkle scored his first ARCA top-10 finish since 2021 earlier this season when he finished ninth at Berlin Raceway, near Grand Rapids. He followed that up later with an 11th place finish at Iowa Speedway.
Tinkle won the 2019 CRA Late Model Sportsman Series championship before moving up to the CRA All-Stars Tour in 2020. He made his ARCA debut in 2021 with a 13th place finish at Berlin, and then scored an 11th place finish two races later at Winchester Speedway.
Isaac Johnson
Martinsville native Isaac Johnson, 23, is making his ARCA Menards Series debut on Friday, driving the No. 93 Chevrolet for Costner Weaver Motorsports.
Johnson grew up attending races at IRP and has been racing pavement late models throughout the Carolinas. Johnson got his start racing simulators on his computer growing up and moved up through the ranks of midget racing and dirt late model racing.
His sponsor, George E. Booth Company, is also his employer. Johnson works as a sales engineer for the company when he is not racing.
Chris Hacker
Chris Hacker, 23, hails from Noblesville and has made three starts in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series in 2023. Friday night's race at IRP will be Hacker's fourth start in the Truck Series. His best finish of the season came at North Wilkesboro Speedway in May, where he finished 12th, driving for On Point Motorsports in the No. 30 Chevrolet.
Hacker suffered a brachial plexus injury (BPI) to his left arm at birth. As a result, he only has use of his right arm. He is the only NASCAR driver in history to compete with this condition.
He's also made two Xfinity starts this season, with a best finish of 14th at Richmond, driving for RSS Racing. He will race the No. 30 Morgan & Morgan Chevrolet for On Point Motorsports on Friday.
