Shane van Gisbergen has built quite a reputation for himself, hasn’t he? From being an unknown/rookie entity in 2023 to building a name for himself as one of the best road course drivers in NASCAR, the Kiwi has come a long way since his debut at Chicago Street Course. His three wins in the Xfinity Series so far have come on road courses, securing back-to-back victories at Sonoma and Portland and defending his Chicago Street Course crown in the Loop 110.

However, his performances on the oval tracks have left much to be desired, until now. An impressive P4 finish at Indianapolis Motor Speedway was a statement to the NASCAR community about just how far the 35-year-old has progressed as a NASCAR driver.

The reason for Shane van Gisbergen’s dominant Indianapolis display

Starting the race in 23rd place, expectations from Shane van Gisbergen were not high at the 2.5-mile oval. Why would they be? The Kiwi has struggled to perform at oval tracks in his short NASCAR career so far, and a poor showing during qualifying didn’t instill fans with much confidence about his capability at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval. However, the Kiwi surprised everybody by securing his second-best result on an oval track, having finished P3 in Atlanta before.

Speaking in his post-race media interaction, Shane van Gisbergen said, “At the start, I was still learning. I’m probably a bit too conservative. I just built up, built up, and got better. And as the car got better, so did I. This Xfinity series is so fun, the way the cars move around and the way we’re all sliding. I had a blast. And then at the end, running fifth was really cool. We decided to take tires and the restarts were epic coming back through. I had a blast.”

Luck played its part as well, as he made up a lot of track positions when a 12-car wreck occurred in front of him in the opening lap. While Shane van Gisbergen escaped unscathed, others were not so lucky, with Sam Mayer and Josh Berry being forced to retire. He managed to climb into the top 10 in Stage 2, finishing seventh, before a late caution for a three-car crash with 16 laps to go changed everything.

The Kaulig Racing driver took the opportunity to go into the pits, taking on fresh tires, and slipped into 13th place, with just 11 laps to go. However, van Gisbergen showed a lightning-quick pace, making up ground through turns 3 and 4 to get back into seventh place on the first lap of green flag racing. Two laps later, the Kiwi was in the top five, and he ended up snatching fourth place from teammate A.J. Allmendinger with four laps to go and maintaining the position until the end.

The P4 finish was a statement result for Shane van Gisbergen, who, in his own words, has been “conservative” on oval tracks. But his approach is understandable, considering that NASCAR is a sport he is still adapting to. With two top-five finishes on oval tracks, and nine more races to go, out of which only two are road courses, getting results on oval tracks could help him secure an Xfinity championship. The Kiwi has adapted to NASCAR quickly, and he has the talent to go all the way this season.

SVG loving his life as a NASCAR driver

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Having switched from V8 Supercars to stock cars, Shane van Gisbergen has seen a meteoric rise in NASCAR since he made his debut in 2023. As things stand, the Kiwi is 13th in the Xfinity Series, with three wins, five top-five finishes, and six top-ten results. Despite the success he has already achieved in his career, whether it was at the 24 Hours of Daytona or his three championships in the Australian Supercars series, SVG has expressed that he’s having the time of his life as a NASCAR driver.

When asked whether he misses his home and the differences he has noticed in NASCAR, Shane van Gisbergen candidly replied, “I miss New Zealand a lot, for sure. But I love it here. I really enjoy racing. I love racing every week. I love having a routine and knowing what I’m doing pretty much every day until November.. that’s exciting. I have three weeks off in August and I have no idea what I’m going to do. It’s a weird feeling.”

“I love this style of racing; the atmosphere, the people, and the schedule. Yeah, I’m loving every moment. I definitely think I made the right choice. I feel like it’s a really cool place for me; being welcome by everyone, whether it’s team people, drivers, and the fans.”

With six races to go until the regular season ends, it’s not beyond the realm of possibility that Shane van Gisbergen could potentially secure more wins. The Kiwi will set his sights on the Xfinity Series championship this time around, and it will be the perfect statement he can make to the rest of the NASCAR community before eventually making his way into the Cup Series. A victory at an oval track could truly make him a force to be reckoned with, and given how talented he is, it seems like that’s only a matter of time.

Do you think Shane van Gisbergen could win on an oval track? Let us know in the comments!