Supercar legend Shane van Gisbergen lists out the key NASCAR challenges ahead of Cup debut with Trackhouse

Shane van Gisbergen is among the Supercar Championship’s most talented street course racers.

Supercar legend Shane van Gisbergen lists out the key NASCAR challenges ahead of Cup debut with Trackhouse

Shane van Gisbergen (@THproject91/Twitter)

Three times Supercar champion Shane van Gisbergen will make his long-awaited Cup debut in the upcoming Chicago Street Race. He will be the second driver to race in Trackhouse Racing’s Project 91 car since F1 world champion Kimi Raikkonen. The Iceman was behind the wheel in the team’s first two Cup starts, and Van Gisbergen’s will only be the third-ever start for the team.

Project 91 is an ambitious undertaking by Trackhouse owner Justin Marks who aims to grow NASCAR and his team’s worldwide popularity. The Next-Gen car using sequential gearboxes and more standard technologies than its previous version, allows champion racers from other motorsports disciplines to race more easily.

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Shane van Gisbergen is one of the most talented strongest street circuit racers in a supercar and the world. It’s one advantage he has over other Cup drivers, as Chicago is the first-ever street course race in history. But some challenges are also awaiting him, such as the driver’s position in NASCAR compared to supercars. Supercars are right-hand drive, while NASCAR is left-hand drive.  

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“Biggest difference from our Supercar to the NASCAR I’m going to have to get used to is, obviously, you’re sitting on the other side of the car. That’s a big difference when we go to a street circuit, when you get used to the walls and stuff, you’ve got the whole car on the other side of you, so it’s going to be a bit different for me,” Van Gisbergen said.

“It’s still a sequential gearbox; I think it’s a five-speed instead of a six, so you’re obviously changing gears with the other hand as well, which will be different, and then it has no doors either,” van Gisbergen added.

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Shane van Gisbergen knows that the Cup challenge won’t be easy

Shane van Gisbergen (Jayski.com)
Shane van Gisbergen’s No:91 Trackhouse Chevy Camaro ZL1 (Credits: Jayski.com)

The Next-Car has several features the supercar champion is familiar with, but it doesn’t give him any dilutional thoughts that the Cup debut will be an easy task. He is aware and ready to face the challenge.

“Looking at last year’s NASCAR or a year before, they were very difficult, tough to drive with the H-pattern and the way it was all set up with the rear end. Now that they’ve gone to independent rear end, sequential gearbox — certainly makes it easier for someone like me or Kimi to come in and have a race. I’m under no illusions it’ll be easy, but certainly, it’s a lot closer to what I’m used to,” he said.

Van Gisbergen has already landed in the US, and his seat fitting for No:91 has also been completed. He also tests cars on the tracks and does rigorous sim-racing training sessions. He will be in the Trackhouse garage for the Ally 400 this Sunday to experience the race week hustles.

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