2024 will bring to the world one of the greatest tales told in the racing world. After a successful debut in 2023 in the NASCAR Cup Series, Supercars champion Shane van Gisbergen will make his full-time debut in the Xfinity Series in the coming year. Trackhouse Racing announced today that they will be collaborating with Kaulig Racing to make this happen. The driver will also be appearing in the Cup Series for a minimum of seven races.
With the announcement of the Chicago Street Course winner’s return, one big question for the 2024 silly season has now been answered.
Shane van Gisbergen returns to NASCAR with a full-time ride in 2024
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When Trackhouse Racing’s Project91 brought Shane van Gisbergen to the shores of NASCAR, he was practically a nobody for the racing fandom here. Though he was surrounded by the clout of being an overseas racer who was making a debut in the newly inaugurated Chicago Street Course, his racing prowess was, as of then, unproven.
But it did not take long for the New Zealander to mark his territory and let people know what he was made of. The Supercars Champion cruised his way to victory and left everyone wanting more of him. The question that loomed large since then was his 2024 schedule. The curtains on the same have been lifted now.
As reported by jayski.com, the New Zealand native could not be more overjoyed at how swiftly his dream to race in NASCAR came by. He said, “After winning in Chicago, I could not stop thinking about racing full-time in NASCAR. I am still stunned at how quickly this has all come together. I must thank the NASCAR industry and fans for embracing me and allowing me to chase this dream.”
SVG’s 2024 USA tour. 🇺🇸
NEWS: https://t.co/yE4v8l5l4K pic.twitter.com/JEI9zsnHxX
— Trackhouse Racing (@TeamTrackhouse) December 13, 2023
The on-the-rise team announced today that they will be collaborating with Kaulig Racing to provide their foreign star a full-time ride in the Xfinity Series. He will also be seen in the Cup Series in seven different races: COTA, the two events at Talladega, Coca-Cola 600, Chicago Street Course, Watkins Glen, and Las Vegas (October). What started as an experimental project at Trackhouse Racing has resulted in the success story of bringing an overseas driver to the tracks of NASCAR full-time.
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Trackhouse Racing’s collaboration with Kaulig Racing to prepare Shane van Gisbergen
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Justin Marks said in the wake of the announcement, “We know Shane will be incredibly competitive at the road course events in both the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity series, but we wanted to get him as much experience on NASCAR ovals as possible, so I am really excited about his 2024 schedule”. Trackhouse Racing is currently in a spot where it can’t let go of its current drivers or buy a 3rd charter. Time being of the essence, Marks’ decision to ease SVG into NASCAR through Kaulig Racing is one of the best moves he could have made.
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NEWS: In 2024, @shanevg97 will drive the No. 97 full time in the #XfinitySeries for @KauligRacing and also compete in seven Cup Series races. pic.twitter.com/nxhPVVE9uC
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) December 13, 2023
Talking about it, Marks added, “Kaulig Racing has a history of winning in the Xfinity Series and as a fellow Chevrolet team, we are so thankful Matt Kaulig and Chris Rice see the potential in Shane that we see. The anticipation for this season is palpable.” Along with A.J. Allmendinger and Josh Williams, SVG will form a trio of drivers for Kaulig Racing in the 2024 Xfinity season. The 34-year-old will be piloting the No. 97 Chevrolet Camaro for the team.
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Though this move to drive for Chris Rice’s team was an unprecedented one, it will no doubt prove to be an elusive challenge for SVG. Let’s hope he has more tricks along the lines of the ones he had at Chicago this year up his sleeve.
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