WELCOME, N.C. — Beginning what will be one of the top international racing stories in the season, three-time Supercar champion Shane van Gisbergen has touched down in America and is ready to embark on his NASCAR career.
Kaulig Racing and Trackhouse Racing announced Wednesday that van Gisbergen, the winner of the inaugural Chicago Street Race in his NASCAR debut in July, will race full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series driving the No. 97 Chevrolet Camaro with Kaulig Racing, while also driving in a minimum of seven Cup Series races next year.
The 34-year-old Auckland, New Zealand native landed in the United States Monday ready to take on a new challenge.
“After winning in Chicago, I could not stop thinking about racing full time in NASCAR,” said van Gisbergen who won Supercars Championships for the Australian Triple Eight Race Engineering team in 2016, 2021-’22.
“I am still stunned at how quickly this has all come together. I must thank the NASCAR industry and fans for embracing me and allowing me to chase this dream. I respect every driver who has put in the work to make it to the Cup Series, and I am ready to put in that same effort. I am anxious to get started.”
In addition to full Xfinity duties, van Gisbergen will participate in the following Cup races:
• Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas on March 24
• Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway on April 21 and October 6
• Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 26
• Chicago Street Race on July 7
• Watkins Glen (N.Y.) Int’l on Sept. 15
• Las Vegas Motor Speedway on October 20.
WeatherTech will serve as the primary sponsor for van Gisbergen’s No. 97 Chevrolet along with his starts in the Cup Series.
“When I decided to come to America and race, I told Justin (Marks) that I wanted to do everything the right way,” said van Gisbergen. “Bringing in a company like WeatherTech as a partner shows how seriously myself and Trackhouse are taking the 2024 season. I am honored WeatherTech put its faith in the effort and know it will pay dividends.”
The leading manufacturer of premium American-made automotive accessories, home and pet care products will also sponsor Zane Smith in the Daytona 500 at Daytona (Fla.) Int’l Speedway with Spire Motorsports.
Trackhouse founder and owner Justin Marks brought van Gisbergen to NASCAR and Trackhouse last year as part of the team’s Project91 program created to give international stars a chance to compete in the sport. Through Project91, 2007 Formula One champion Kimi Raikkonen raced in NASCAR in 2022-’23.
“We know Shane will be incredibly competitive at the road course events in both the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity series, but we wanted to get him as much experience on NASCAR ovals as possible, so I am really excited about his 2024 schedule,” said Trackhouse Racing founder and owner Justin Marks. “Kaulig Racing has a history of winning in the Xfinity Series and as a fellow Chevrolet team, we are so thankful Matt Kaulig and Chris Rice see the potential in Shane that we see.
“The anticipation for this season is palpable.”
Van Gisbergen joins a Kaulig Racing organization that has won two Cup Series races and 23 Xfinity Series races since the team’s inception in 2016.
The team won this year’s Bank of America Roval 400, as well as four Xfinity races with a variety of drivers. Van Gisbergen will join Kaulig Racing teammates Josh Williams, driver of the No. 11 Chevrolet and A.J. Allmendinger, driver of the No. 16 in next year’s Xfinity Series season.
“We started our talks with Trackhouse about the possibility of putting SVG in a Xfinity car for a few races quite some time ago, and from there the talks evolved to discussions about how much it would cost to run a full season,” said Chris Rice, president of Kaulig Racing. “Once we knew we had an open seat for next season, it became the perfect scenario to put him in the car.
“We partner with Trackhouse’s pit crew department, and with their key support from Chevrolet, it made teaming up an easy decision.”