By Seth Eggert, Associate Editor
DARLINGTON, S.C. – With just under a full season under this belt, Shane van Gisbergen is now utilizing previous track experience as he returns to NASCAR Xfinity Series venues like Darlington Raceway for the second time.
In the Spring race at ‘The Track Too Tough to Tame,’ van Gisbergen finished 15th. Fast forward to the Sport Clips VFW Help a Hero 200 and the Kaulig Racing driver raced his way into the top-10 in the final stage of the race. The New Zealander credited the improved performance to his experience in the Spring.
While battling with Austin Hill and Chandler Smith he moved around the track to use the momentum of both lanes at Darlington. The previous experience allowed the Kiwi to put more focus on improving his No. 97 WeatherTech Chevrolet Camaro SS than on learning the track.
“I definitely like (returning to a track), you know, you turn up, you know where things are and get out on the track, you can just focus on the racecar straight away instead of learning the place,” van Gisbergen explained. “(I) certainly felt more comfortable second time here and especially in race, you learn how the race develops, learn where you want to be on restarts. The experience keeps growing for me.”
van Gisbergen was eighth when the final caution of the race pushed it into overtime. A poor pit stop for Justin Allgaier gave the three-time Xfinity winner another position on track. van Gisbergen ultimately took the checkered flag in seventh.
The previous experience in NASCAR races has also helped prepare the 35-year-old for the intense heat felt during Cup and Xfinity events. Although SuperCars have hot races, they race less often and with shorter distances.
“(SuperCars) have hot races like this, but these races obviously very long and it’s hot every week,” van Gisbergen observed. “We might have one every couple of months, so it’s tough, but we have good cool suit systems and drink bottles and stuff. The guys do a good job with that, but it’s certainly tough for everyone.”
The seventh-place finish was van Gisbergen’s seventh top-10 finish in the Xfinity Series. The Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender is locked into the playoffs by virtue of his wins at the Chicago Street Course, Portland Int’l Raceway, and Sonoma Raceway.
Next for van Gisbergen is the Focused Health 250 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Earlier this year he scored his first career top-five finish in the Xfinity Series at the 1.54-mile track.
The Focused Health 250 at Atlanta Motor Speedway is scheduled for Saturday, September 7, at 3:00 p.m. ET on USA Network. The race will also be broadcast on both the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.