Van Gisbergen scores fighting 15th
Despite starting down in 27th, Shane van Gisbergen fought hard to secure a top 15 finish in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Charlotte, but it could have been more.
Van Gisbergen was running 13th and had the tyres and pace to attack those ahead inside the final 30 laps.
A top 10 finish was on the cards but the Kiwi was forced into the outside wall by Taylor Gray.
The damage put the #97 on the back foot, but this did not stop van Gisbergen from fighting back and reclaiming a gutsy 15th.
It is the Kiwi’s seventh top 15 finish of the season and the Kaulig Racing rookie currently sits 15th in the standings.
The driver who started directly behind van Gisbergen, Chase Elliott, won the race thanks to a masterpiece of strategy.
The NASCAR Cup Series Hendrick Motorsports driver made good use of a fresh set of tyres at the death, while a call not to pit during the opening caution for a Riley Herbst crash proved critical.
Due to Kyle Weatherman being sent to the back, SVG was promoted to 27th on the starting grid, but lost some ground in the early laps.
After pitting in the opening caution for Herbst’s crash, the #97 made some ground across the remainder of the first stage to sit a solid 21st when racing was paused.
Van Gisbergen held station before shooting into the top 15 after staying out during a Lap 74 caution for the spun Parker Kligerman.
Although the Kiwi dropped back to 23rd in the remaining 12 laps of the second stage, Kaulig Racing had an ace up its sleeve.
Van Gisbergen was armed with a fresh set of tyres and made good use of it, making some aggressive moves to get closer to the top 15.
Following a final green flag pit stop, the #97 was sitting a solid 13th place with good pace across the long green flag stretch.
But things changed when Ryan crashed on the inside of Turn 2 with 33 laps to go.
Van Gisbergen restarted 13th, but was squeezed into the wall by Taylor Gray, which damaged the #97 for the run home.
At the same time leader Justin Allgaier was spun out at the front of the field and the caution allowed Kaulig Racing to service the Chevy with minimal time lost.
Van Gisbergen restarted 19th but racing only lasted another two laps as Austin Hill and Cole Custer had their own fight.
After a slide from Custer created side to side contact, Hill retaliated by spinning the #00 into the wall.
This set-up a 13-lap sprint where van Gisbergen resumed racing in 17th.
As Elliott blazed home to victory on fresh tyres, van Gisbergen also made some moves up high to reclaim a gritty top 15 finish.
Van Gisbergen now turns his attention to the NASCAR Cup Series where he is also taking part in the Coca-Cola 600, while the next Xfinity race is at Portland.
Photo by Matthew T. Thacker / NKP / LAT Images
NASCAR Xfinity Series Charlotte results
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