SHANE VAN GISBERGEN READY FOR NASCAR DEBUT

MEDIA RELEASE/Project91 Trackhouse – Photos: supplied

Three-time Supercar champion Shane van Gisbergen will make his NASCAR Cup Series debut Sunday driving the No. 91 Enhanced Health/Quad Lock Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in the inaugural NASCAR Cup Series race on the Chicago Street course.

The event will mark the third race for PROJECT91 after appearances by 2007 Formula One World Champion Kimi Räikkönen at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International in 2022 and at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas on March 26.

The 33-year-old van Gisbergen drives a Chevrolet Camaro in the Supercars Championship for Triple Eight Race Engineering, winning championships in 2016, 2021 and 2022. He owns 78 wins and 47 pole positions making him the fourth most successful driver in series history.

He’s won the Bathurst 1000 in 2020 and 2022.

Van Gisbergen isn’t a stranger to America finishing second in the 2015 24 Hours of Daytona in the GTD class. He’ll have a kindred soul in owner Marks who created Trackhouse Entertainment Group in 2020 after a driving career in sports cars and NASCAR. With the goal of creating a racing brand that transcends the sport, Marks formed Trackhouse Racing that took to the track in 2021 with Daniel Suárez behind the wheel.

In January 2021, the team announced a partnership with international superstar entertainer Pitbull who has been a frequent guest at NASCAR races and elevated Trackhouse’s presence through inclusion in several of his songs and music videos over the last two years.

Midway through the 2021 season, Trackhouse Racing purchased the NASCAR assets of Chip Ganassi Racing and began the 2022 season as its own two-car team with Suárez and Ross Chastain as drivers. Chastain gave the organization its first victory at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas on March 27, 2022 and won again the same year at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway on April 24. Suárez became the first Mexican (Monterrey) driver to win a Cup race when he dominated the Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway race on June 20, 2022. Chastain won Sunday’s race at Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway.

Van Gisbergen will join Suárez and Chastain in the first-ever NASCAR Cup Series street race located in downtown Chicago. The event will take competitors past and through many of the city’s most renowned downtown landmarks on Michigan Avenue, South Columbus Drive, South Lake Shore Drive and the start-finish line near Buckingham Fountain.

Van Gisbergen spent the weekend before at Nashville Superspeedway, doing a 50-lap introduction run at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Monday and simulator sessions with General Motors this week.

Shane van Gisbergen:

HOW DOES SOMEONE WHO SPENDS MOST OF THEIR LIFE IN NEW ZEALAND AND AUSTRALIA FIRST DEVELOP AN INTEREST IN NASCAR?

“Yeah, it’s on every Monday there. It’s funny.. I was a big Tony Stewart fan when he was racing, and then of course Darian (Grubb) was his crew chief. So now getting to work with him is very cool and getting to know him. But yeah, the last few years, still kept in touch. Then of course with the opportunity this year, I’ve been watching most races trying to study. Always been a fan of it, so to get to jump straight into the Cup Series is pretty exciting.”

WHAT’S KIND OF STOOD OUT TO YOU ABOUT THIS CAR THAT IS DIFFERENT?

“Yeah, well the first thing is sitting on the other side of the car is tough. And then climbing through the window (laughs).. I’ve never done that before. Yeah, it’s quite different. But the technical side of things is pretty similar in the way the car is built. A big, heavy car. A lot of horsepower. It’s similar to what we have. It looks difficult. I’m going to find out tomorrow what it’s like at Charlotte (Motor Speedway) – I get a small run. But yeah, I’m just looking forward to it. I’m trying to keep my eyes open – try to learn this week and try to not have too many expectations about the street circuit. It looks so different to what NASCAR has done before. When you watch the COTA race and how crazy that was, it was a bit eye-opening. But I hope it’s not like that at Chicago.. that’d be crazy.”

WHAT ARE YOUR REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS FOR THE CHICAGO STREET RACE?

“Well I don’t really have anything, results-wise. I just want to do my best. I’ve prepared as well as I can, and I know the Trackhouse team runs some awesome cars. Meeting everyone and seeing how motivated they are. They’re nothing wrong with the equipment and the preparation. So yeah, I have no expectations, results-wise, but if I’m prepared the best I can be, we can achieve anything.”

YOU’RE ONE OF THE MOST DIVERSE DRIVERS ON THE PLANET. ARE YOU GOING TO TRY TO TWIST HIS ARM FOR AN OVAL TRACK RACE?

“We had a small chat about that earlier. I’ve never really thought about ovals too much, but yeah you’d love to have a go at it. Like watching yesterday and how committed the guys were in qualifying – they had the practice and then you sit around all day and you get one lap. To see how committed everyone was and see who was braver than the others into turn one, it was pretty cool to watch. It sucked watching, I wanted to be out there. So, yeah I’d want to have a go at it one day.” 

IS THIS SOMETHING THAT IF IT GOES WELL, YOU’D COME TO AMERICA AND RACE WHETHER IT’S HERE OR INDYCAR?

“I think all of the above. It was a pretty exciting opportunity. I love Supercars and what I’m doing now, but starting to speak to Justin (Marks) about it last year and this year obviously sparked my interest in doing other things. I really just want to see how it goes. I haven’t been to America since before COVID time, so to be able to travel now and experience things again – yeah, we’ll see how it goes and maybe it will lead to more.”

No. 91 Trackhouse Team Roster
Founder: Justin Marks, Rocklin, California
President: Ty Norris, Sumter, South Carolina
Driver: Shane van Gisbergen, Auckland, New Zealand
Crew Chief: Darian Grubb, Floyd, Virginia
Car Chief: Gary Putnam, Vernon, Connecticut
Spotter: Keith Barnwell, Hudson, North Carolina
Engine Builder: ECR Engines, Welcome, North Carolina
Engine Tuner: Jason Watkins, Ridgeway, Virginia
Interior: Shane Callis, Adelaide, Australia
Mechanic: Eric Hoyle, Asheville, North Carolina.
Truck Driver: Dan Collins, Columbus, Ohio
Engineer: Zac Brown, Eolia, Missouri
Engineer: Jose Blasco, Mexico City
Fueler: J.P. Kelley, Luray, Virginia
Front Tire Changer: Kenyatta (Kap) Houston, Mooresville, N.C.
Rear Tire Changer: J.P. Kealey, Ottawa, Canada
Jackman: Aslan Pugh, Wilmington, Delaware
Tire Carrier: Brendan Foley, Baltimore, Maryland

Team Owner Justin Marks

HOW IMPORTANT IS THIS WEEKEND FOR NASCAR AND ITS FUTURE IN STREET COURSE RACING? WHAT DO YOU THINK THE FANS CAN EXPECT WITH THIS TYPE OF RACING?

“There’s obviously a lot of unknowns. I’m generally a fan of street racing because you get to bring an exciting product to the people. I tell this story – I raced in the Long Beach Grand Prix in one of the support divisions six or eight years ago. I remember Sunday morning before the race, I sort of had this light bulb moment where I was like this race works so well because there’s 100,000 people here and 95,000 of them aren’t race fans. They’re here because something is happening in their town and it’s exciting and came right to their front doorstep. So I think that’s an important element of street racing. We run a race in Nashville and there’s so many people that come that don’t know much about INDYCAR racing. They just think it’s cool that there’s race cars coming to their city and racing through the streets and it’s quite a spectacle. So from that standpoint, I’m a huge fan NASCAR doing it. 

“As far as expectations, I don’t know. Street racing requires more discipline in patience and race craft in any kind of racing in the world. This group of guys have the tendency to waiver a little bit late in the race – we see that a lot of times with green-white-checkers on a road courses and stuff. My hope is that we get to see a lot of green flag racing. I think there’s a risk that a portion of the race, a substantial portion of the race, will be behind the safety car. I hope that’s not the case because I think street racing can put on some of the best racing than anyone can see. Especially late in the races when fuel is burned off and the tires are sliding around and people are getting more courageous. I think it’s really, really exciting. In talking to some of the other competitors, I mean it’s all over the map, as far as what people think we’re going to see, which I think is exciting.”

Marks Business Career

• Marks, 42, is the founder and team owner of Trackhouse Entertainment Group and Trackhouse Racing.
• He is a co-manager of Marks Family Foundation, with several different philanthropic endeavors. The family, led by father Michael Marks, has been a highly successful private equity leader in the Silicon Valley for years.
• Before Trackhouse Racing, Marks opened the Trackhouse Motorplex (formerly GoPro Motorplex) go kart racing facility near Charlotte in late 2012. He entered race team ownership at lower levels, including a venture with late owner Harry Scott in NASCAR’s lower rungs, as well as a World of Outlaws team.
• Marks moved to Nashville, Tennessee in 2020 to set up the corporate headquarters for Trackhouse Racing.
• The team competed as a single car team with Daniel Suárez in 2021 with its cars housed at Richard Childress Racing in Welcome, North Carolina. 
• The Trackhouse team won the 2021 NASCAR Diversity Team Award for its diversity in the sport and reaching out to new audiences. 
• In June of 2021, Trackhouse announced the acquisition of Chip Ganassi Racing’s NASCAR assets, a move that secured two full-time NASCAR Cup Series entries and cleared the path for expansion.
• In its first season as a multicar team in 2022 working out of its Concord, North Carolina race shop, Suárez and Ross Chastain won three races in 2022. Chastain finished second and Suárez 10th in the standings – both are career bests.
• Marks won the 2022 National Motorsports Press Association’s (NMPA) Myers Brothers Award during the 2022 NASCAR Awards in Nashville. The award recognizes individuals and/or groups that have provided outstanding contributions to stock car racing.
• Marks won the 2022 “Byrnsie Award” from Fox. The award was established to celebrate an individual in the NASCAR Cup Series who showcases the same principles as the late Steve Byrnes embodied — preparation, teamwork and family within the garage area.
• He is an investor in the Music City (Nashville) Grand Prix Indycar race.
• Marks along with Kevin Harvick and Jeff Burton, purchased the Championship Auto Racing Series (CARS) Tour in January. The professional Late Model and Late Model stock car grassroots series competes at local short tracks throughout the Southeast United States.
• Marks now splits time between the North Carolina race shop and his home near Nashville where he and wife Erin are raising two daughters.

Racing Career

• Marks will race in Saturday’s Xfinity Series race in Chicago for Kaulig Racing.
• Marks missed the start of the May 29 Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, but for a good reason. He was winning the Trans-Am Memorial Day Classic at Lime Rock Park. After having engine issues and breaking a rotor prior to the start of the event, Marks’ Camaro dominated the TA race, finishing nearly 10 seconds ahead of second place.
• Marks has been a driver for nearly 20 years enjoying sports car success, including factory rides with Porsche, Acura and BMW.
• Marks competed in six NASCAR Cup Series races with a best finish of 12th-place in the 2018 Daytona 500. He made 35 starts in the Xfinity Series posting a win, three top-five and seven top-10s.
• Marks won the Xfinity Series race at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on Aug. 13, 2016 driving for Chip Ganassi Racing.
• Marks competed in 39 races in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series posting four top-10s and capturing two pole awards.
• Marks joined four co-drivers in winning the 2009 Rolex 24 in the GT division.