Shane van Gisbergen joins historic three-man club with dominant NASCAR win at Watkins Glen
The three-time Supercars champ 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, the New Zealander was unable to qualify from the pole position after he was nipped by Ryan Blaney.
But the Aucklander bided his time 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 record-breaking 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.
'Oh, man, good to get that one back,' said van Gisbergen, who led 38 laps in the three-caution race.
'What an awesome win. The car was just amazing again.''
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 multi-year contract extension last week.
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The Age
10 hours ago
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Sydney Morning Herald
10 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Race-by-race previews and tips for Sunday's meeting at Wyong
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Perth Now
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Schmidt's switch: Wallabies set to unleash stand-in 10
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