NASCAR rookie Shane van Gisbergen on how he’s revving up for his new career
Van Gisbergen poses with his No. 88 Chevrolet with new Red Bull livery
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Did you ever see yourself winding up in NASCAR?
Before we get to that ace triumph, let's talk about the odds against Kiwi racers. IndyCar's Scott Dixon has said his racing dream never would've come true if his father hadn’t sold off shares to area businessmen who were keen for him to succeed. What did it take to get you off the island?
It was sort of the same thing. You can't do it without having amazing people support you the whole way. One of the biggest ones for me is an auto dealership franchise called the Giltrap Group. If you look at pretty much any Kiwi driver, they have Giltrap on their helmet visor and it’s a real privilege to wear that. I was in one of their junior formula cars and they helped me come through the ranks all the way to NASCAR, where they’re still supporting everything I do. It's an unreal thing what they've done for Kiwis.
Starting out, it seemed more achievable for me to become a pro racer by going to Australia than if I had gone to America or Europe. That was the thing, to copy the Scott Dixon model. A lot of people go straight to Europe. Marcus Armstrong, who's in IndyCar right now, started out in Europe and was even in the Ferrari academy for a few years.
Shane van Gisbergen was NASCAR's first-ever debut winner
© Heidi Zumbrun
NASCARs are very, very heavy and a lot less nimble – but still just a car in the end
Was your family big into racing?
My father was into rallying a lot in the '80s and kept going until me and my sister came along. Then he had us racing quads and bikes. He supported me all the way. In Australia he'd come to a lot of races, but it's a bit harder now that I'm over here. Racing was pretty much everything when I was younger. Every year this magazine called Speed Sport would promote a racing scholarship that was a big deal in New Zealand. They'd give money to race in Formula Vee. The first year I tried out, one of my friends won it and went on to race quite successfully that year. I tried again the next year and took up karting while I waited, just to learn circuit racing a little better. Ultimately, I won the scholarship on my third try, in 2004, and started racing Formula Vee.
In the years after, I raced Formula Ford and Toyota, the junior single-seat categories in New Zealand. By the end of that Toyota season, I got to test V8 Supercars for Stone Brothers Racing, which was one of the top teams at the time, and did pretty well. There was this team called Team Kiwi Racing that had their cars run by Stone Brothers and halfway through the 2007 season they lost their driver, so I got thrown in at 18-years-old – a massive jump in competition and probably one I wasn't ready for. I finished off the season without embarrassing myself however and the next year, Stone Brothers promoted me to the main team. It was awesome to go from pretty much straight out of school to achieving my dream.
So no part of you was targeting F1 as the ultimate stop?
I was halfway decent at open wheel, but I've always been a pretty big guy. Most of those open-wheel guys look like they should be 14 years old. When I was in Toyota Series, I was overweight and struggling with speed because I was so heavy. So, I ended up going more in the touring-cars direction, which was exactly where I wanted to be.
I can remember Roger Penske slinking away from a NASCAR event to catch a plane in hopes of checking out the Australian Supercars championship. Was there much of a NASCAR presence on that scene then and are racing fans down under up on NASCAR?
Not really. I followed NASCAR a bit when [Aussie Cup driver] Marcos Ambrose was racing, but when he stopped, I didn’t really pay much attention again until Trackhouse co-owner Justin Marks launched Project 91 in 2022, with the goal of letting the world's best driver have a go in NASCAR. When they kicked off the cultural exchange with 2007 F1 champion Kimi Räikkönen, I wasn't sure I’d ever have a chance to do it, but I put out feelers through former NASCAR Cup driver Boris Said. Boris knew Justin and sort of started the conversation.
To my great surprise and joy, Justin reached out and told me, 'There’s a new race happening in 2023 on a street track that I think you'd be perfect for. Give me a few months to find some sponsors and partners.' That was an awesome conversation, just because I didn't go into it thinking something would come of it. A few months later, Justin called and said, 'Yeah, this is going to happen', and it ended up being on a weekend where I didn't have a Supercars race. Pretty epic how it all worked out.
Van Gisbergen is now racing every week – and needs to be prepared
© Heidi Zumbrun
Was that your first time racing in America?
No, I'd raced a few times in IMSA and the Daytona 24, but it was definitely the first time in Chicago.
It was also NASCAR's first crack at staging a road-course race. What was the view from the cockpit?
It was a pretty awesome weekend for me. I don’t get too fussed about the weather and stuff. Being that I was a visitor and it was a one-off experience, I just tried to make the most of it – focus, do my best, enjoy myself. I had a blast.
How do V8 Supercars compare with NASCAR Cup cars?
They're reasonably similar in some ways. We do a lot of street circuits in Supercars, but ours are quite different. NASCARs are very, very heavy however and a lot less nimble – but still just a car in the end. You just kind of adapt. I did as much studying as I could and away we went.
"I just try to do my best," says Shane van Gisbergen
© Heidi Zumbrun
Let’s talk about that slip-and-slide race. Anytime the frontrunners got settled, a puddle would come along and wipe them out, throwing the race into chaos...
Yeah, the race was pretty standard at the start – wet. I was kind of up front and led for a bit, and then hovering around second or third. But then we kind of got screwed by an extended weather delay, which spoiled our strategy and put all of the good cars at the back. But it was fun coming through the field. A few guys made mistakes and we had some awesome battles. It all worked out in the end.
Can you describe your feelings in victory lane. Did you come away thinking Cup wins would be that easy?
Well, it definitely wasn't easy. I had a great bunch of people around me and that makes a huge difference. I felt comfortable right away in the first practice. I knew what to expect and we had a really good plan. My crew chief Darian Grubb is an amazing guy with so much experience. We were really right on it from the start and it was an awesome thing to share that moment in victory lane with him and the other members of the Trackhouse team, because a lot of the people on the team hadn't ever won a race before. That's how unexpected it was.
At what point does the vibe go from 'That sure was something!' to 'Are you sure you can't stick around?'
After that, I decided to come back and do another Cup race – the road-course race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, home of the Indy 500. During that weekend, they asked me if I wanted to run the truck-series race as well, which was down the road at Indianapolis Raceway Park, a little oval circuit. It was very tough, but I had a blast and thought NASCAR could be a lot of fun. Then, it just kept snowballing from there. I got the opportunity to race in the Xfinity Series and a few Cup races for learning last year. I did a lot more racing than I thought I was going to do.
Shane van Gisbergen had an unexpected path to NASCAR success
© Heidi Zumbrun
To the point where Trackhouse says, 'How about we sign you up to run full-time?'
Basically, yeah, that's what they did.
Is there a mentality shift that comes with going from racing NASCAR part-time to full-time?
Not really, no. It's racing and that's what we do. The biggest thing now is that I’m racing every week and I've got to prep with my guys. I'm in the sim every week and that sort of thing. The schedule's more intense, but for me, that's what I want to be doing.
Trackhouse's four-driver roster takes foreign exchange to the next level. Besides yourself, there's NASCAR's Mexican champ Daniel Suarez and four-time Indy 500 winner Helio Castroneves of Brazil. What's the shop talk like between you three?
It's been awesome talking to them. Daniel and Ross Chastain, our Cup vet, it’s amazing how open they are. Anything I ask about racing ovals in particular they happily share – and I won't hesitate to pay back the favor when the road courses swing around. We're making each other better. Overall, as a team, I think we keep getting better and better.
van Gisbergen has been putting in the miles on test tracks and simulators
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van Gisbergen says NASCAR is "a huge step out of my comfort zone"
© Daylon Barr/Red Bull Content Pool
So, what's reasonable to expect from you this season? Is rookie of the year too much to ask given your one-off track record?
Honestly, I never set any goals for myself. I just try to do my best. I know that I've got a huge opportunity here and I'm trying to make the most of it. You know, it's a huge step outside my comfort zone, coming over here and racing something different. Other than really wanting to improve on ovals this year, I'm not putting any expectations on results or championship positioning. If we win some races, that's great and I'm sure we'll celebrate. But I just want to take the season as it comes and have fun doing it.