Shane van Gisbergen speaks on the weight of driving NASCAR's #88 car, upholding Dale Jr. and Dale Jarrett's legacy

Shane van Gisbergen is taking his NASCAR career to the next level in 2025 when he moves up to the Cup Series on a full-time basis. The New Zealand native will drive the #88 Chevrolet for Trackhouse Racing.

The #88 has been synonymous with many NASCAR legends, including Dale Jarrett, who wore the number on the side of his car from 1996-2006. The number was then used by Dale Earnhardt Jr., who drove the #88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet from 2008-2017. Now, the number returns in 2025 with Van Gisbergen.

In a recent interview via Speedcafe TV, Van Gisbergen spoke about the feeling of carrying the iconic number next season.

"It's pretty cool," Van Gisbergen said. "The other one who was before Dale Earnhardt Jr. was Dale Jarrett, so that's two pretty big drivers. Having Dale Earnhardt Jr. text me the day before we announced it about how cool it was and how he hopes we represent it well and stuff, nothing like a bit of pressure there, but pretty cool to have that. Obviously, would've loved to have raced with 97, but 88 is a special number." (17:00 onwards)

This past season, Van Gisbergen piloted the #97 Chevrolet for Kaulig Racing full-time in the Xfinity Series. The 35-year-old won three races in 2024, which came at Portland, Sonoma, and Chicago respectively. He finished 12th in the points standings after qualifying for the playoffs in his rookie season.

Prior to that, Van Gisbergen became the first driver in over 50 years to win on his Cup Series debut when he won the inaugural Chicago Street Race in 2023 behind the wheel of the #91 Trackhouse Racing machine. He also raced Cup part-time in 2024 for Trackhouse, with a runner-up finish at Watkins Glen being a highlight.

In 2025, Van Gisbergen will be teammates alongside Daniel Suarez, driver of the #99 car, and Ross Chastain, driver of the #1 car.

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Shane van Gisbergen said he learned a lot with Kaulig Racing in 2024

Shane van Gisbergen took the NASCAR Xfinity Series field by storm in the 2024 campaign by winning three races and qualifying for the playoffs as a rookie. Although he failed to make it out of the first round, it was still a quality year for the soon-to-be full-time Cup driver.

After the season finale race at the Phoenix Raceway, Van Gisbergen took to social media to express his gratitude for Kaulig Racing and everyone who helped him in his NASCAR journey. He wrote:

"Solid finish to end the season! Thanks @kauligracing for having me this year, learnt a heap and had a lot of fun! Thanks as well to everyone who followed my journey over here this year, been a great change for me and enjoyed the new challenges! Looking forward to a couple weeks off now 😀"

Before NASCAR, Van Gisbergen was highly successful in other forms of motorsports, most notably being a three-time champion in the Supercars Championship in 2016, 2021, and 2022. He ventured into NASCAR competition in 2023.