Van Gisbergen brings Kiwi heritage to NASCAR

Shane van Gisbergen will proudly race with Kiwi colours on his #88 Chevrolet in the NASCAR Cup Series this weekend.

While his former Supercars rivals will be racing at Bathurst this weekend, van Gisbergen will be flying around Las Vegas.

The Kiwi is flying following a fifth win of the year at the Charlotte ROVAL last weekend.

Making the race even more special will be SVG racing with a New Zealand-inspired paint scheme.

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It means a lot to van Gisbergen.

“It’s an awesome paint scheme, so special to have some influence on the design,” van Gisbergen said. 

“It’s super cool to be able to show some of my kiwi heritage on the track this weekend in Las Vegas. 

“To be able to have the Southern Cross, Silver Fern and the colours of New Zealand on my car – I was speechless when I first saw it. 

“Just really special to me and I’m excited to be carrying huge momentum with my team into the weekend.”

In addition to the ROVAL win, van Gisbergen also cracked the top 10 on an oval for the first time at Iowa.

As his rookie season approaches the finish line, he feels he is becoming a more rounded NASCAR driver.

“I think it’s two sort of stories,” van Gisbergen said on his lessons so far.

“The road courses obviously have been amazing, and then the ovals — I started the year in the 30s, genuinely, which is very average, but I feel like we’ve grounded out, now we’re a 15th to 10th place car on most weeks. 

“I think all tracks are difficult. Las Vegas this weekend, going there and having to hold it wide open at 190, it’s a crazy feeling and something I’m not comfortable with. 

“It’s so fast when you hook into those corners there. 

“Then when you do it in the race around other cars, that’s where I’m learning trying to get comfortable, know where to place the car in the air and try and understand what’s happening. It’s just taking time.” 

While he is no longer in Playoffs, van Gisbergen still has an award up for grabs and it is up to the fans.

The Kiwi is one of the few drivers in the running and fans can place their votes HERE before Monday, November 3.

Image: Supplied

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