Shane van Gisbergen’s NASCAR struggles continue to gain attention as the New Zealand driver, celebrated for his success on road courses, faces persistent setbacks on oval tracks with Trackhouse Racing. As playoff season nears, van Gisbergen speaks candidly about the steep learning curve, highlighting the contrasting demands of oval racing despite his rapid adaptation in other racing disciplines.
SVG’s Rise on Road Courses and Ongoing Oval Challenges
Shane van Gisbergen, often heralded as NASCAR’s current “road racing god,” captured his fourth road course victory of the season after Watkins Glen, placing him alongside legends Jeff Gordon and Chase Elliott in the record books for consecutive wins. The Kiwi’s expertise on circuits like Sonoma and Watkins Glen showcases his precise driving style honed in Supercars, but he continues to face a frustrating struggle to translate this success to NASCAR’s traditional oval arenas.
NASCAR, since its start in 1949, has been identified by its demanding oval racing style. Drivers are expected to push to the brink in tight-knit competition, balancing control and aggression on high-speed, banked tracks. Van Gisbergen, though dominant on road layouts, openly admits that mastering ovals requires a different approach and skill set. Ahead of the 2025 playoffs, his ongoing search for answers remains a major narrative in the paddock.
Adjusting to Oval Racing: Progress and Pain Points
Entering the 2024 season, Shane van Gisbergen had never competed on a paved oval, marking a unique challenge in his racing journey. His rapid ascent in Supercars, where he notched dozens of victories and secured the championship, did little to prepare him for NASCAR’s oval-centric environment. Despite this, van Gisbergen’s progression has seen notable milestones. In May 2025, a pivotal test at Charlotte allowed him to begin closing the gap. Days later, he dominated the All-Star Open at North Wilkesboro Speedway by leading 54 laps, proving his adaptation was in motion.
His development peaked further when he bested Jake Bollman to win the Pro Legends A-feature at Charlotte’s Cook Out Summer Shootout, narrowly edging his rival after a challenging 25-lap contest. Still, the transition has not been seamless. Between triumphs on road layouts like Sonoma and Watkins Glen, he recorded disappointing finishes—30th or worse—at both Dover and lowa, underscoring the inconsistency that plagues his oval efforts.
Speaking candidly about these hardships, van Gisbergen admitted,
“It’s just difficult. You’d think two corners only would be easier, but the style of racing over here is just so different…It’s so different, the way the cars react, the way they’re set up, the way they load into the corners, the banking of the corners. And, of course, the speed we’re going. Like, the average speed is almost 300 ks for most of the tracks. It’s ridiculous how fast you’re going and how close you are to everyone.”
—Shane van Gisbergen, Trackhouse Racing Driver
Lack of Practice Time Complicates SVG’s Transition
Another major obstacle facing van Gisbergen is the limited practice offered to NASCAR drivers. Each race weekend generally features only about twenty minutes of practice, with just a handful of events granting up to fifty minutes. For SVG, used to more generous track time in international series, this represents a significant adjustment. He gave insight into the impact this has on his learning curve, saying,
“And then you have bugger all practice. There’s only 15 minutes every week. Whereas on a circuit in a normal series, you have half an hour to an hour every week. Yeah, so it’s not much track time, and then they throw you in the deep end of the race, and you’re sort of learning on the fly. So, just taking time.”
—Shane van Gisbergen, Trackhouse Racing Driver
The abbreviated practice windows force rookies like van Gisbergen to adapt under pressure, often learning key nuances during the heat of competition rather than refining techniques in controlled sessions. These constraints make it infinitely harder for him to overcome the technical differences between NASCAR ovals and the road courses where he remains dominant.
The Uphill Battle Ahead for Van Gisbergen in the Playoffs
Van Gisbergen made his full-time NASCAR jump at age thirty-four, notably later than most rookie drivers. With a storied background that includes eighty-one Supercars race wins, the Kiwi brings a robust racing résumé but faces the dual challenge of age and inexperience on ovals. His journey has proven even more daunting compared to younger drivers who enter NASCAR with years of oval-centric backgrounds and unbridled enthusiasm.
The upcoming playoff schedule heightens this pressure. While the Charlotte Roval, a hybrid road course, offers hope in the second round, the path to survival requires strong results at venues like Darlington, Gateway, and Bristol. Van Gisbergen’s previous outings at Darlington yielded 20th and 26th-place finishes. He has never raced at Gateway, and a mechanical issue in Bristol saw him finish 38th last year. With no prior experience at some critical tracks, the odds appear stacked against his playoff campaign progressing smoothly.
Compounding his challenge, racing veterans, including Denny Hamlin, have noted both SVG’s unique strengths and the biggest obstacles in his path. Hamlin remarked,
“On the road courses, it’s a little more straightforward. As long as there’s not an ill-timed caution. … There’s no doubt the guy can go through traffic. Zero doubt on my mind. Is he the best road course racer I’ve ever seen? Absolutely. I competed against the Tony Stewarts, the Jeff Gordons — all those guys. He’s better than all of them. But the only thing you’re going to have to mix this up, to keep him from winning every single road course race, is — it’s going to have to take something wacky. Or else you can just go ahead and write the script for the next foreseeable future.”
—Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing Driver
What’s Next for Van Gisbergen: Conquering the Ovals or Road Course Mastery?
Shane van Gisbergen’s pursuit of an elusive oval victory remains one of the most compelling stories in the NASCAR Cup Series. His meteoric rise on road courses positions him alongside icons like Jeff Gordon and Chase Elliott, but his struggles on oval tracks highlight the gulf between the racing cultures and technical demands found in other championships and the world of American stock cars.
The road ahead for van Gisbergen is littered with formidable challenges: new tracks, limited track time, and a different style of racing. While his adaptability and resilience have already yielded some flashes of oval potential, consistent results still appear just out of reach. Playoff survival may hinge on making incremental gains at Darlington, Gateway, and Bristol, ahead of an all-important shot at road course redemption on the Charlotte Roval.
With the stakes higher than ever and a challenging playoff run ahead, all eyes remain on whether Shane van Gisbergen can overcome these obstacles and add oval success to his growing NASCAR legacy, or if his dominance will remain limited to road courses. For fans and veterans alike, the answer will unfold one race at a time as SVG faces NASCAR’s toughest tests yet.
