Breakout NASCAR star opens up on 'hating' racing and mindset switch

Shane van Gisbergen has opened up on 'hating' racing in recent years, and how he flipped from that mindset to chasing the joint season-lead for NASCAR Cup Series wins this weekend.

The New Zealander is in his first full-time season racing in the Cup Series, and has already racked up two wins and a comfortable position in the playoffs, and is favorite to win this weekend at Sonoma.

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Van Gisbergen's form at ovals is notably below par in his debut season, but has been improving as the year has gone on, taking three top-20 finishes in his last six oval races after just one in the first nine oval races of 2025.

Whether that improvement will help him advance past the first (all-oval) round of the playoffs this year is up for debate, but Van Gisbergen could be a legitimate threat for a deep run in 2026 if he improves to even a regular mid-pack finisher on ovals coming into next season.

Van Gisbergen: I've never had so much fun racing

No driver in the last 20 years of Cup Series running has been faster to three race wins, and no foreign-born driver can match his trio of victory's in the competition's history. While critics may point to his struggles at ovals, the fact of the matter is that SVG is doing what nobody else has been able to.

Speaking this week, Van Gisbergen said: “It justifies, or backs up, why we’ve done it and why Justin [Marks] believes in me. Justin looks like the smartest guy here after me locking into the playoffs, especially how dismal it looked early in the year. We all kept that belief.

"I feel like I made the best decision ever. I was really hating racing in Australia. I hated driving those cars. Now, I’ve never had so much fun racing, going to the racetrack every single weekend. I really love what I do.”

On his well-documented oval struggles, he added: “It’s just comfort. New experiences are always hard. When I went back to Darlington this year for the second time, I struggled there in the Southern 500 (in 2024), but in the race this year, I bent the car in practice, so we qualified badly.

"But in the race, we just got better and better as we went. It’s just when something is not new to you anymore, you’re more comfortable in that environment. I’m driving the same car every week with the same people, whereas last year I was chugging and changing. This year is comfortable and I’m learning so much more.”

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