The ripples from Shane van Gisbergen’s masterclass last weekend in Mexico were enough to ruffle a few feathers in the NASCAR world, particularly those who questioned the New Zealander’s newfound berth in the 2025 Cup Series Playoffs. After winning the inaugural Mexico City race with a 16.5-second advantage over second place, SVG confirmed what everyone knew from the start.
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The Australian V8 Supercars champion was brought in by Justin Marks as a full-time driver in the sport — after his victory on debut in Chicago in 2023 — to raise the stakes for Trackhouse Racing. Coupled with the likes of Daniel Suarez and Ross Chastain, SVG essentially guaranteed his team owner a postseason berth given his skillset.
However, his lack of performance on ovals has been a point of contention for the likes of Richard Petty amongst others in the fraternity. Petty questioned the legitimacy of the playoffs system when a driver, who is essentially a road course specialist, takes away a playoff spot from a driver more invested and adept at NASCAR’s core style of track.
Gisbergen recently acknowledged and responded to the flak during an interview with Shannon Spake. He said, “It kind of happened last year as well, another guy in the thirties (in points) made it. That’s how this championship is, I guess, and I don’t shy away from it. That’s the reason I’m here: to win road courses and get in the playoffs.”
“But I’m also trying to improve on my ovals. I really think I’m doing that, and I want to be right in the mix on ovals, and I feel like we’re making big strides for that. I hope by the end of the season that talk goes away because we’re competitive on ovals… We’ll just keep doing our thing,” he added.
If SVG were to shore up his oval performance going forward, it would be hard for the fraternity to question the legitimacy of his playoffs berth, given that he is also working hard at what the core of NASCAR is. With three more road/street course races to go during this regular season, another win while turning right could also have the same effect.
The upcoming race is a perfect example of the type of track he would need to master. Pocono Raceway is one of the most peculiar facilities NASCAR visits in terms of the layout of the oval track. With three distinct corners to attack and a bumpy surface to contend with, Shane van Gisbergen is likely to have his hands full.
