Shane van Gisbergen is delighted over the top-ten finish in ‘intense Indy hustle’

Shane van Gisbergen is close to signing a permanent deal to race full-time in NASCAR.

Shane van Gisbergen is delighted over the top-ten finish in ‘intense Indy hustle’

Trackhouse Racing co-owner Justin Marks and Shane van Gisbergen (Credits: @shanevg97/Twitter)

The inaugural NASCAR Chicago Street Race winner Shane van Gisbergen made his second Cup start this Sunday at Indy. He ended the day with a solid P10 finish and outraced his teammate Ross Chastain. He had his first experience of the true intensity of NASCAR races as he was blocked and pushed aside by Cup regulars. SVG even lead a lap in the race.

He was the highest-finishing ringer in the race, with four more drivers from other disciplines starting. His fellow Supercars driver Brodie Kostecki was second best finishing ringer. He scored a P22 on his Cup debut with RCR. His fellow Kamui Kobayashi, debutant, had the worst finish in the group, P33, with 23XI. LeMans winner Mike Rockenfeller finished P234, while 2009 Fi champion Jenson Button scored a P28.

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Van Gisbergen, who has won three Supercars titles, compared the Cup series to its V8 counterparts and pointed out that the Indy event was very intense compared to the slow and delicate fight in Australia. He added that he enjoyed the hustle the whole race. The P10 has helped him to leave another strong impression in the Cup garage.  

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“Just a different type of pace. Here, it’s very intense the way you have to drive the car, and V8s at the moment — you’re driving very slowly and delicately. These things you have to hustle the whole time. It’s really fun,” Shane van Gisbergen said, as reported by RACER.

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Shane van Gisbergen gives an update on his NASCAR future

Shane van Gisbergen at Chicago in his No:91 Trackhouse Chevy (Credits: @shanevg97/Twitter)
Shane van Gisbergen at Chicago in his No:91 Trackhouse Chevy (Credits: @shanevg97/Twitter)

SVG is set to leave Supercars behind to pursue a career in the premier stock cars racing series. He wants to do it in the 2024 seasons despite having a contract signed with his Supercars team. He prioritizes his current team and is in the process of finding the perfect replacement for him.

While talking about a full-time NASCAR move next year after the Indy Top 10, he said, “We’re closer, but I haven’t closed anything out. I really have to sort Australia first — that’s looking promising — and then coming up with something here and hopefully move over soon.”

He also added that his Truck outing earlier at Indy Park was memorable, just like Sunday. SVG said, “I had a smile on my face all weekend. The truck race was fun, and I was constantly learning and getting better and better all week. And understanding the lingo and stop saying understeer and oversteer; it’s loose and tight. It’s been fun.”

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