Shane van Gisbergen chasing oval breakthrough after latest NASCAR road course win

Shane van Gisbergen says he has “come a long way” on superspeedways and is now eyeing a long-awaited breakthrough on an oval as the NASCAR Cup Series regular season enters its final stretch.

The Trackhouse Racing driver has been in a class of his own on road courses ever since his Chicago debut in 2023, with last weekend’s Watkins Glen triumph marking his fifth win on such layouts. This year alone, he has taken a joint-series-high four victories - all on road courses.

But with the bulk of the calendar made up of ovals, including superspeedways, van Gisbergen has faced a steep learning curve given his background in Australia’s Supercars series.

Despite his winning form, he sits just 25th in the standings, 371 points adrift of championship leader William Byron.

However, riding high on momentum from recent races, the Kiwi believes a big result on ovals could be on the cards in the final two races of the regular season.

“It’s obviously something to dream about winning on an oval, and superspeedways I’ve had some pretty good moments there,” he said. “Last year [at] Talladega, Kaulig was a smaller team,

“Dad was on the front row of the pit box helping with the strategy or talking with Travis Mack on the strategy. He loves it.

“I’d love to have a good result with him the next couple weeks. He’s driving the bus for me with his friend Jason to those races. I’ll probably drive to Daytona with them, and it’ll be a good time like we used to do.”

Van Gisbergen admits he has a growing appreciation for the craft required to excel at high-speed ovals - and for the drivers who have mastered it.

And while he has finished no higher than 14th at an oval this year, the 36-year-old feels increasingly confident in his decision-making and positioning at superspeedways.

“ Yeah, I found like [with] the Atlanta racing, you need a bit more driving skill, whereas Talladega it’s just that bravery or Daytona that bravery and putting your car in the right place and knowing the proximity of your car. 

“That’s where — like if I watch someone like Ryan Blaney or even Ricky Stenhouse is amazing. He normally qualifies where we do, and just how he finds himself in all those holes to get him up near the front, it’s amazing how they can see where the momentum is and then all of a sudden the race slows down and you’re driving around a 30 percent throttle but he’s got all that track position and you wonder how he got there.

“My confidence in being aggressive and — not aggressive but confident in my moves and car placement, I feel like I’ve come a long way. Who knows how we’ll go in a couple of weeks, but I do and I don’t enjoy those superspeedway races.

“I love the technicality of them, but we’re also like lambs to slaughter at times just getting ready for the field to grenade. It’s fun but it’s also not.