Shane van Gisbergen's first road course chance fades at COTA as he drops below playoff cut line

Shane van Gisbergen was one of the favorites to win the first road course race of the year at Circuit of the Americas. However, the Kiwi driver came short of even fighting for the lead, adding pressure in securing a playoff spot throughout the regular season.

The 35-year-old NASCAR Cup Series rookie Trackhouse Racing driver came to the stock car racing league as a three-time Supercars champion, which honed his racecraft on road course tracks.

With a sixth-place finish at COTA, SVG improved his ranking in the standings to 18th, although he still sat below the playoff cutline.

Shane van Gisbergen driving the No. 88 Chevrolet at COTA - Source: Imagn

The No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro driver started the race sixth and led the field for 23 laps. However, he couldn't keep up with drivers like Christopher Bell and Kyle Busch in the closing laps.

The team opted to pit from the front on lap 74, giving Busch the lead. Shane van Gisbergen rejoined the track fourth hoping to make up positions on fresher tires. A lap 78 caution caused by Denny Hamlin and Austin Dillon brought the pack together but the New Zealander couldn't capitalize.

He even fell outside the top 10 but climbed back to finish sixth, with Bell scoring a back-to-back victory.

The EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix COTA is the first of six road courses scheduled this year, along with the inaugural Mexico City race in June. This type of racing is undoubtedly SVG's strong suit, making it his best chance to punch a ticket to the postseason.

Shane van Gisbergen won the 2023 Grant Park 220 in the streets of Chicago - Source: Imagn

So far, van Gisbergen has only won NASCAR races on road course tracks. Two years ago, the driver secured the victory in his debut Cup race on the streets of Chicago. He looked promising in last year's Watkins Glen race but lost the lead to Chris Buescher on the final lap.

Over in the Xfinity Series, SVG drove full-time for Kaulig Racing and won three races, all of which were on road course tracks.

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"We faded in stage 3": Shane van Gisbergen reflects on COTA race

Shane van Gisbergen shared his thoughts on the race at Circuit of the Americas. The Trackhouse Racing driver was pleased with leading the field for 23 laps in a car he thought had speed but admitted to struggling in stage three.

SVG took to X (formerly Twitter) and wrote:

"Good to lead a few laps today! We were good for the first two stages, the @WeatherTech Chevrolet had some speed but I just struggled a lot on the restarts and we faded in stage 3. Thanks @TeamTrackhouse for the weekend, bring on Phoenix."

As mentioned, SVG will return to action this weekend at Phoenix Raceway for the Shriners Children's 500, the fourth race of the 2025 season. The 312-lap oval racing contest will start at 3:30 p.m. ET on FS1 for the TV coverage.