Insider Reveals Shane Van Gisbergen’s Eligibility for All Star Race Ahead of NASCAR Return

When NASCAR headed to Chicago for its first-ever street race circuit, there was one man that dominated the headlines following his historic win. The best part was that he wasn’t even a NASCAR driver. Instead, it was the Australian V8 Supercars champion, Shane Van Gisbergen. He dominated the latter half of the race, eventually clenching his first win in NASCAR that too in his debut run.

Now considering that the Kiwi won a race, does that make him eligible for next year’s All-Star race? Well, that is exactly what a fan on Twitter had in mind. Soon enough, eminent NASCAR journalist, Bob Pockrass, responded to the inquiry with affirmation.

Shane Van Gibsergen is eligible for All-Star Race after Chicago win

In order to consider SVG’s reliability, we would have to take a look at how the All-Star field is determined. Out of the 24 cars that head out for the race, 21 of them are based on the basis of drivers who won either this or in the previous season. Meanwhile, the other three cars are taken into consideration for the starting lineup after it seems how they perform at the All-Star Open event.

Yes his Chicago win qualifies Shane van Gisbergen for the all-star race. https://t.co/mJDzrhp0ip

— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) July 20, 2023

Pockrass mentioned, “Yes, his Chicago win qualifies Shane van Gisbergen for the all-star race.“

Therefore, considering that SVG won this season at Chicago, he would be automatically eligible for the All-Star race next season. And no, he would not have to qualify through the All-Star Open event, which takes place a couple of hours prior to the main event.

SVG is returning next month for another NASCAR Cup Series Race

After the scintillating performance at Chicago, it seems that SVG isn’t quite done with NASCAR. As per latest reports, the Kiwi is headed back to racing at NASCAR during the Indianapolis Road Course race, later this season. Furthermore, he would be driving his Project 91 Trackhouse Racing car just like the last time.

Speaking about the honor to race once again this year, SVG mentioned, “Just getting to race in NASCAR is an opportunity I never thought I would get, but then to win and get another chance this year is beyond anything I imagined. I can’t thank Justin Marks, everyone at Trackhouse Racing and NASCAR for this opportunity.”

SVG excelled at the street course for a plain and simple reason. He was familiar with such formats of tracks. Meanwhile, it was something completely new for the NASCAR driver heading into the weekend. The same thing was previously explained by Denny Hamlin as well.

But this time, he would be going to a road course around the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway, so he would not have the same advantage he had at Chicago. This is especially considering that the others have plenty of experience around this track.

So it is to be seen if SVG can rebound and win once more during his second stint in a Cup Series car.