Shane van Gisbergen backed up his February displaying at Atlanta with yet one more sixth-place end on the drafting observe, main the way in which for Trackhouse Racing.
Van Gisbergen now has 4 oval high tens in his Cup profession, and three of these have been in the course of the 2026 season. At Atlanta this previous weekend, he was in competition for the win in time beyond regulation, and was three-wide for second with eventual race winner Ryan Blaney as the sphere raced in the direction of the white flag.
Whereas jockeying for place, he slipped again to sixth by the point the checkered flag flew, however it was nonetheless a really spectacular day for the three-time Supercars champion.
Motorsport.com’s Matt Weaver caught up with Van Gisbergen after the race, and whereas thrilled with the consequence, he was nonetheless dwelling on what he might in another way within the battle for the win.
“It’s superior, however my mind goes loopy for what I might have completed higher,” admitted Van Gisbergen. “I used to be beside the No. 12 automobile [Blaney] coming off (Flip) 4, coming to the white (flag), however yeah, it was fairly enjoyable. It’s superior racing right here.”
Regardless of racing on no fewer than 4 completely different continents in his spectacular profession, Van Gisbergen declaratively stated that “nothing” ready him for this type of racing.
“It is so completely different, however that is one among my higher tracks. For some purpose, I’m at all times first rate right here, so I’ll take it.”
And it is true, as Van Gisbergen now has a pair of sixth-place finishes within the Cup Sequence at Atlanta, however the observe can be the positioning of his best-ever oval displaying within the NASCAR O’Reilly Sequence. He completed third there in 2024, which was simply his second-ever oval begin within the O’Reilly Sequence on the time.
Watch: Blaney prevails with EchoPark win in wild OT
When requested if there was something he might have completed in another way, Van Gisbergen had a number of ideas. Tyler Reddick additionally approached him after the race, discussing the end as they each misplaced out on the ultimate restart.
“Undoubtedly the restart,” famous Van Gisbergen on what he would deal with in another way. “I assumed I might have connected to the #45 [Reddick] higher. He got here up, gave me some recommendation after – it’s simply essential to do this, and I simply missed that. We in all probability might have gotten a greater restart. After which off (Flip) 2 on the final lap, Bell actually got here up. I don’t know if I might have shot down under him or no matter. We sort of touched rather a lot and that killed all my run.”
Van Gisbergen additionally raced round longtime rival Austin Hill a bit in the course of the race on Sunday, and there was no drama between the 2 following their sit down with officers within the NASCAR hauler.
Battle to make the Chase
Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Photograph by: Meg Oliphant / Getty Photos
The race was additionally a optimistic for Van Gisbergen’s Chase hopes, as he misplaced no floor and really gained a degree on the cut-line even with these round him (Jones, Logano, Cindric) all having strong factors days. He’s now 31 factors above the cut-line.
“I used to be pondering that on the inexperienced/white (time beyond regulation restart), I’m like there’s nobody round me that I’m racing for factors, so I actually wanted to consolidate the place I used to be,” added Van Gisbergen. “That didn’t change my strategy, however good to get a P6.”
There are six races left within the common season, with one other Sunday night time race subsequent weekend at North Wilkesboro.
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