Just how large of a deal was Shane van Gisbergen’s NASCAR Cup Series win in Sunday’s Grant Park 220? Here’s some numbers to place issues into perspective.
Most notably, van Gisbergen is the first driver of NASCAR’s trendy period, and the first since Johnny Rutherford in 1963, to win in his Cup Series debut. The trendy period document for quickest Cup win was beforehand shared by Jamie McMurray and Trevor Bayne, who each gained of their second begins.
For now, no less than, van Gisbergen additionally turns into one in every of two drivers in NASCAR historical past to have an undefeated document at the Cup stage. The different is Marvin Burke, who gained his one and solely race at Oakland in 1951.
Van Gisbergen’s win is the first by a part-time Cup Series driver since A.J. Allmendinger gained the Indianapolis highway course in 2021, although Allmendinger has run numerous full seasons in NASCAR. It’s the first win by a real, highway course-specializing “ringer” since Mark Donohue gained at Riverside in 1973.
Van Gisbergen is the first driver from New Zealand to ever win a Cup Series race, and the second from the continent of Oceania, becoming a member of fellow Supercars alum Marcos Ambrose. The Australian Ambrose gained twice at Watkins Glen, in 2011 and 2012.
He’s solely the sixth foreign-born driver to win in the Cup Series all through its 75-year historical past, becoming a member of Ambrose, Daniel Suarez (Mexico), Juan Pablo Montoya (Colombia), Mario Andretti (Italy) and Earl Ross (Canada). Suarez was the most up-to-date of these winners, at Sonoma in 2022.
Van Gisbergen drove Trackhouse Racing’s “Project 91” entry to the win in solely the third-ever begin for that exact automobile, as Kimi Raikkonen drove it at Watkins Glen in 2022 and Circuit of the Americas earlier this season. The automobile is designed as an try to offer drivers from different racing disciplines distinctive alternatives in NASCAR.
It’s the first win for a No. 91 automobile since Tim Flock gained at Hickory in 1953. Flock was beforehand the solely driver in NASCAR historical past to win with that automobile quantity, doing so 16 occasions.
And lastly, van Gisbergen will eternally be etched in NASCAR historical past as the driver to win the sequence’ first-ever road course race. This weekend was a wild card race for each driver on the circuit, so it is maybe solely becoming that the greatest wild card driver was the one who took the victory.
Van Gisbergen made historical past on Sunday by attaining numerous firsts for the NASCAR Cup Series, and a number of other different first-in-a-very-long-times. However, do not be shocked if they are not lasts for the Kiwi highway racing ace.
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