Van Gisbergen stoked to get Nascar drive
CHICAGO: Threetime Supercars champion Shane van Gisbergen will race in the Nascar Cup Series on the streets of Chicago in July for Trackhouse Racing.
Van Gisbergen (33) will take over in the No 91 Chevrolet from former Formula One world champion Kimi Raikkonen. ‘‘I can honestly say I have dreamed about an opportunity in Nascar, but really never thought it would become a reality,’’ van Gisbergen said.
‘‘I can’t wait to get to the States to meet everyone and prepare for Chicago.
‘‘It’s Nascar’s first time on the streets of Chicago so in some ways everyone will be a rookie like me, but I don’t underestimate that it’s going to be a huge challenge.’’
Another Formula One world champion, Jenson Button, is planning to run the Chicago race as part of a threerace deal with Rick Ware Racing. He also ran at the Circuit of the Americas in Texas and will race on the road course at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Trackhouse
Racing, which fields the No 1 car for Ross Chastain and No 99 for Daniel Suarez in the cup series, began Project91 with the idea of expanding the team’s global reach.
Raikkonen created a buzz for Nascar in his native Finland and elsewhere in Europe, while van Gisbergen hopes to do the same Down Under.
Van Gisbergen won his first Supercars championship in 2016 and added two more the past two years.
‘‘I’ll concede the American racing fan might not be as familiar with Shane but if you talk with anyone in Australia, New Zealand and that part of the world, they will tell you he is one of the most talented drivers on the planet,’’ Trackhous founder Justin Marks said.
‘‘He’s used to street racing in heavy cars and I think everyone will be very impressed with his performance.’’
Van Gisbergen will have Darian Grubb for a crew chief. He helped Tony Stewart win the Cup Series championship in 2011. — AP