So much for the idea that SVG is just a road course ringer, right? This was the great claim made by his detractors after he qualified for the playoffs. Yes, SVG won four races, but all four were road courses. This was the line of argument that many fans had taken. SVG was often cited as an example of the problem with the win-and-you’re-in criteria for the playoffs. While I’m certain that for most fans, this was strictly an argument about the playoffs system, it was also clear that many fans were what one would call haters.

I recall arguing with many of these haters on X/Twitter. Shane van Gisbergen had a lot of xenophobia thrown his way. There were even a couple fans that oddly called him a “Mexican.” I’m not sure why, but it was clear these fans were haters of SVG’s. Whether or not they were actually xenophobic is up for debate, we all know that Kyle Larson isn’t a racist, but in a moment of video gaming anger he utilized a racial slur to express said anger. I’m not condoning it at all, but we all know that in moments of anger people sometimes go for the low blow.

Regardless, Shane van Gisbergen continues to shock his own unique set of haters. He just achieved his first top 10 on an oval. Now that is something that most of us did not see coming. I knew he was close after I went to Richmond and was able to watch him perform there. Still, I wasn’t for sure he’d get his first top 10 at an oval this season. This was especially true after his first round playoff elimination.

SVG Overcomes Penalty at Kansas

Ever since that race at Richmond, I’ve been watching van Gisbergen’s on board camera on HBO MAX. I pull it up on one TV, and have the race on the other. This has been the case except for Darlington, where I watched switched back and forth between SVG and Ricky Stenhouse on board cameras. Sorry, I’m a huge fan of Pudgy Penguins, and I consider myself part of the $PENGU huddle. Those of you into cryptocurrency know what I’m talking about, but I digress.

Of all the weeks for SVG’s first top 10, I wasn’t expecting it to be at Kansas. This was mainly due to the penalty and loss of his crew chief for the weekend. I mean I had listed van Gisbergen as a driver who needed Rodney Childers in 2026, but he’s already been hired by JRM. So I didn’t consider a sudden change in crew chief as something good for SVG this weekend. Let’s not forget he basically had to start the race a lap down, with a stop and go penalty.

Honestly, I was late to watch the start of the race. I rarely miss the start of the race. There had been some birthdays in my family recently, and I was at a family get together. I still had my fiancee, Emily, watching and texting me updates. Truthfully, I was going to try and get out of there to make it, but her early text messages weren’t making me get in any hurry. I don’t think people understand how difficult it is to start a lap down, and come back to finish in the top 10. Yeah, it happened somewhat often in the previous car, but the next gen car makes it even more difficult. Still, even in the previous generation car, if you weren’t a Kyle Busch or a Kevin Harvick, going a lap down right away and coming back to the top 10 wasn’t very likely.

Richmond Raceway, SVG

Gregory Latham — Pit Pass Network

Racing Them the Way They Race You

Last week at New Hampshire, I really thought SVG would finish top 10. Then Brad Keselowski bounced off the inside wall going 5 wide and took him out. I have noticed a trend when watching the #88 team’s on board cameras each week. The NBC broadcast booth brought it up as well. Drivers don’t expect to see SVG up front on ovals, and they’ve been racing him that way. Personally, I’ve seen it in a more biased fashion. My biggest criticism of SVG has been what he allows other drivers to get away with.

Of course, this has started to change over the past couple weeks. He is getting more aggressive when he is up front, and he is not backing down. This is absolutely necessary in NASCAR Cup racing, especially in the next gen era. We saw a great example of it at Kansas.

At one point in the race, SVG was racing with William Byron and Alex Bowman.  They attempted to put him in the middle. William Byron ran him up the track a bit. Now NBC seemed to think that was due to Byron’s handling troubles, but I feel like many drivers think they can get away with that on ovals with SVG. The way I saw it, it looked like Byron was trying to make quick work of him, by driving him up the track. Bowman just happened to be on his outside as this was happening. Instead of lifting, he stood his ground and it was Bowman who suffered the consequences of Byron’s move.

Haters Hate Those Who are Great
(But Greatness Recognizes Greatness)

SVG is great for NASCAR. Earlier in the season, we debated whether or not Kyle Larson could compete with F1’s top drivers. I thought he could. I still think he could. He’s Kyle Larson; he can drive anything. In my opinion, that’s the level of talent that Shane van Gisbergen has. I believe that both SVG and Larson could compete with F1’s top drivers.

There will always be naysayers and haters. People will say things like “his skill set doesn’t apply to ovals, because you don’t shift as much and don’t need footwork.” There will also be people that cuss him and tell him to “go back home” and call him “foreigner” or “Mexican.” That doesn’t bother him though. He keeps focused on learning to apply his talent to this style of racing. He isn’t going to pull a Denny Hamlin and start intentionally angering fans either. The type of hate he is getting, reminds me a lot of the type of hate that Jimmie Johnson got.

I’m not saying he’s going to win 7 championships, or even one. He will win races and be competitive on all types of tracks. It would be nice to see him get a championship before he heads off to Europe. It’s refreshing to see a 36 year old rookie with such a positive attitude. One that still has an all-in commitment to learning a new style of racing. Furthermore, he gives us old guys a driver to root for other than Denny Hamlin.