Van Gisbergen wins for fourth time this season

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. — Shane van Gisbergen earned his fourth victory this season, blowing out the competition again at Watkins Glen International.

The Trackhouse Racing driver joined 2020 champion Chase Elliott and NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon as the only drivers to win four consecutive Cup races on road or street courses.

Unlike his prior wins at Mexico City, Chicago and Sonoma, van Gisbergen was unable to qualify from the pole position after he was nipped by Ryan Blaney. The Auckland, New Zealand, native bided his team after starting second, taking his first lead on Lap 25 of 90 and then settling into a typically flawless and smooth rhythm on the 2.45-mile road course.

The rookie made his final pit stop with 27 laps remaining and cycled into first place on Lap 74 of a clean race with only three yellow flags. Cruising to a big lead while leading the final 17 laps, van Gisbergen beat Christopher Bell by 11.116 seconds. Chris Buescher finished third, followed by William Byron and Chase Briscoe.

With five victories in only 38 career starts in NASCAR’s premier series, van Gisbergen trails only Elliott (seven wins) and Kyle Larson (six) among active drivers on street or road courses.

The win validated the decision by Trackhouse to sign van Gisbergen to a multiyear contract extension last week.

Feisty Gibbs

It was another frustrating race for Ty Gibbs, who spun John Hunter Nemechek late in Stage 2 and then complained about the handling and strategy of his No. 54 Toyota. Joe Gibbs Racing competition director Chris Gabehart, who recently began working as a strategist and consultant to Gibbs’ team, radioed the driver to “stay in the game” after the Nemechek wreck and later took issue after Gibbs questioned his team’s strategy.

“I’m sure you’ve got a real good understanding from inside the car,” Gabehart told Gibbs on the radio. “So you can call the strategy if you want, or we can keep rolling.”

Gibbs, the grandson of team owner Joe Gibbs, finished 33rd and remained winless since moving into Cup after winning the 2022 Xfinity Series championship. Teammates Chase Briscoe, Denny Hamlin and Bell each have qualified for the playoffs with victories this season.

Up next

The Cup Series will race Saturday, Aug. 16 at Richmond Raceway, which will play host to its only NASCAR race weekend this season. The 0.75-mile oval had two annual races on the Cup schedule from 1959-2024.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.