Shane van Gisbergen sees ‘surprise’ positive signs despite early rookie NASCAR season struggles: “We could run up front at Daytona” 

The three-time Supercars champion, Shane Van Gisbergen, who began his first full-time NASCAR Cup Series this season, has been making his presence known ahead of the 2025 Pennzoil 400. Despite early struggles in the first few races, the Trackhouse rookie remains optimistic about his chances ahead of the race in Las Vegas.

Gisbergen will hit the track at the iconic 1.5-mile superspeedway. Behind the wheel of the No. 88 Red Bull Chevrolet for Trackhouse Racing, he finished the qualifications at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in 29th position and will start in row 14. He will be looking to improve on his performance at Las Vegas last year, where he finished in 29th place.

Shane Van Gisbergen during practice for the NASCAR Cup Series Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas - Source: Getty

Van Gisbergen reflected on his early experiences in NASCAR in an interview with SpeedFreaks. He spoke ahead of the recent qualifying session, pointing out the difficulties and the positives he has encountered so far.

"Well, we have had promise. We had a lot of speed. We could run upfront at Daytona, which was a surprise to me. Then Atlanta as well. Our competitiveness has been really good at all tracks. Even Phoenix, although we were at the back, the potential was there. I was feeling more and more comfortable with how we were going (at Phoenix). So, it wasn't a lost cause. I feel like we have been fast enough. Just had a bit of an average run," said Shane Van Gisbergen in the interview posted on X.

The excitement is evident in his words as SVG continues to adapt to the world of oval racing, a stark contrast to the street circuits and road courses where he made his name in Supercars. None of his Trackhouse teammates are starting in the top 15 at Las Vegas. With Ross Chastain in 19th and Daniel Suarez in 23rd place, they will be hoping for a good start on Sunday.

How has Shane Van Gisbergen's season been so far?

Shane Van Gisbergen was proud of his first-ever Daytona outing as he did not expect to do so well early in the race. However, things did not end well for #88 as he finished 33rd after starting 26th. He finished 23rd in Atlanta after a last-lap crash and got caught in another wreck in Phoenix on Lap 100, finishing with a DNF.

His most notable performance this season came in Circuit of the Americas (COTA) at Austin, where he finished in sixth place. Christopher Bell ultimately won as he was able to overtake Kyle Busch and hold off William Byron in the final stage.

Gisbergen will reunite with Red Bull again for his race at Las Vegas. The partnership has brought him many accolades in Supercars, and he will be hoping it brings his current season back on track at the superspeedway.