Team owner predicts van Gisbergen
will make a deep run in NASCAR playoffs
[August 12, 2025]
By NATE RYAN
Labeling statistics as “kind of an American thing,” Shane van
Gisbergen avoids dwelling on his record-setting rookie season in the
NASCAR Cup Series.
“It normally hits me on the plane ride home or at 4 a.m. after a few
beers,” van Gisbergen said Sunday after conquering the Watkins Glen
International road course in New York for his fourth victory this
year. “I try to reflect on it, but I also try and get to the next
week pretty quick. I’ll try not to tweet at 4 a.m. this morning.”
If the laid-back Kiwi were into chest-pounding on social media, the
list of heady accomplishments includes being the third driver with
four consecutive Cup wins on road or street courses, joining 2020
champion Chase Elliott and NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon.
It also includes being the first rookie with four victories —
breaking a tie with seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson and
three-time champion Tony Stewart — and the largest margin of victory
(11.116 seconds) in Watkins Glen history and second largest this
season behind his 16.567-second win at Mexico City that was the
biggest gap from first to second since 2009.
The next achievement could be the loftiest yet for the driver from
Auckland, New Zealand, who struggles massively on the ovals that
comprise most of the season.
Can van Gisbergen be a legitimate championship contender in Year 1?
Trackhouse Racing owner Justin Marks, who put his reputation on the
line and convinced sponsors to risk millions on an audacious plan to
make the Cup playoffs with an inexperienced and unheralded rookie,
suggests a deep run awaits the No. 88 Chevrolet.
“Shane just continues to go showcase why we’ve made a long-term
commitment to him, why we brought him over here from New Zealand and
built this team around him,” said Marks, who signed van Gisbergen to
a multiyear extension last week. “Because in a sport like this where
winning is so important and so hard to do, if you can catch some
lightning in a bottle like we’ve got with SVG, you’ve got to really
lean into it. That’s what we’ve done. It’s like seeing a plan come
together.”
The plan now has a path to the doorstep of a Cup title.
The first round of 16 drivers is contested on three ovals, but van
Gisbergen has a sizable 22-point cushion (victories are worth five
points apiece for the playoffs) to overcome a 26.9 average finish on
ovals.
Pared down to 12 drivers, the second round features a road course at
Charlotte Motor Speedway. A win there would catapult a driver into
the third round, where eight drivers will square off for four berths
in the championship finale at Phoenix Raceway.
“He’s in a really good position,” Marks said. “I think we have a
real opportunity to get to the Round of 8.”
The playoffs open at tricky Darlington Raceway, whose odd shape is
among the most difficult layouts in NASCAR, but van Gisbergen is
more concerned about the first-round cutoff race at Bristol Motor
Speedway. He finished 38th in his April 13 debut on the Tennessee
short track.
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Shane van Gisbergen (88) reacts after finishing first during a
NASCAR Cup Series auto race in Watkins Glen, N.Y., Sunday, Aug. 10,
2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
“I ran terrible there,” said van Gisbergen, who finished 20th a week
earlier at Darlington. “Bristol was so far from anything I’ve ever
done, and that’s a really tough place. That’s probably the biggest
worry. Darlington, I feel fine, especially now that we have a lot of
points. You’ve just got to have three solid weeks, and you might get
through. We just have to play the averages, make no mistakes and
make sure we’re in a good spot every week.”
Zilisch future
After pulling Connor Zilisch from the Cup race at Watkins Glen,
Marks said it’s unclear when the Xfinity Series points leader will
return from the broken collarbone he suffered while celebrating his
series-high sixth victory Saturday. With approval from NASCAR,
Zilisch could skip the final three regular-season races and still be
eligible for the Xfinity playoffs.
“He’s a huge asset and a huge part of the future of the business,”
Marks said. “We have to make sure that we’re not hurting any
long-term opportunities by taking advantage of a short-term
opportunity.”
Having raced with a broken collarbone in 2021, van Gisbergen
believes Zilisch could return for the Aug. 22 race at Daytona
International Speedway.
“I had a weekend off and raced the next week, so pretty much what
he’s going to go through,” van Gisbergen said. “I’d get a plate put
in and then take it out at the end of the year. It’s obviously going
to be in pain. My biggest problem was tightening the belts. I could
really feel the plate through the skin, and it was a horrible
feeling. But I raced the next week and did pretty well. For sure
with some good doctors and some good drugs, he’ll get through the
race fine.”
Impressing the boss
With team owner Michael Jordan in attendance, Bubba Wallace finished
eighth at Watkins Glen (a spot ahead of 23XI Racing teammate Tyler
Reddick) for a season-best fourth consecutive top 10. The stretch
includes the Brickyard 400 victory that qualified Wallace for the
playoffs and relieved enormous pressure from the No. 23 Toyota
driver.
“Indy was life-changing,” Wallace said. “It allowed me to not harp
on all of the mistakes that I usually make at a road course. The big
boss was here, so it’s good to get MJ a couple of top 10s.”
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