Ahead of Shane van Gisbergen’s second NASCAR Cup Series start, Trackhouse Racing founder Justin Marks says that the New Zealander’s debut win has given validity to the Project91 programme.

Van Gisbergen became the first debut Cup Series race winner in six decades when he prevailed on the streets of Chicago in July, driving Trackhouse’s part-time #91 Chevrolet Camaro.

The ‘Project91’ entry was announced in 2022 with the stated intent of increasing Trackhouse’s global reach by providing a berth for star international drivers to race in NASCAR.

2007 world drivers’ champion Kimi Raikkonen piloted Car #91 last year at Watkins Glen and earlier this year at the Circuit of The Americas, which produced results of 37th and 29th.

Van Gisbergen, however, topped his very first practice session, qualified third, and raced to victory from as low as 18th in the third occasion in which the Project91 entry rolled out.

“It just puts fuel in the tank as far as we’re trying to build something here where the greatest drivers in the world have a place that they can call home if they want to try NASCAR racing,” said Marks ahead of the three-time Supercars champion’s next start, this weekend at Indianapolis.

“For us to put it in Victory Lane, it just shows, I think, the world that this Project91 is a very, very elite effort.

“It’s not about vanity. It’s not about just sponsorship. It’s not about social media.

“It’s about putting a programme together that can actually win and tell great stories.

“I think the fact that we put it in Victory Lane, it just galvanises our mission in trying to attract the greatest motorsport talent in the world.”

Van Gisbergen is in fact set to start two NASCAR races this weekend, making his oval debut in the Trucks Series at Indianapolis Raceway Park on Friday night (local time) with Niece Motorsports before backing up with Trackhouse on The Brickyard road course from Saturday.

Fellow Supercars driver Brodie Kostecki will be on his Cup Series debut, in a MobileX-backed Camaro out of Richard Childress Racing.

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