SVG won an enthralling Roval 400 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, defeating Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson in a strategy-heavy 109-lap race.

Van Gisbergen survived a late scare, managing an issue with the right rear tyre to win by 15 seconds.

The New Zealander’s streak of five road course wins puts him only behind four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon, who took six wins between 1997 and 2000.

Van Gisbergen can tie Gordon at Circuit of the Americas next March.

“It just started getting hot and sliding around,” said van Gisbergen of the tyre issue.

“What an awesome race. Kyle and Christopher were driving really good. It got a little rough, but man, the battle was awesome.

“Unbelievable. I really enjoyed that. It was a long time waiting, hoping that the yellow wasn’t going to come out.”

WE’RE GREEN AT THE ROVAL 🟢@USANetwork | @BankofAmerica pic.twitter.com/tNY6sEJiFw

— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) October 5, 2025

It was a wild start to the race. Exiting the chicane, van Gisbergen got loose and hit the side of pole position winner Tyler Reddick in the #45 23XI Racing Toyota Camry.

Moments later, Kyle Busch in the #8 Richard Childress Racing Camaro got loose exiting Turn 1, thanks to a nudge from Carson Hocevar in the #77 Spire Motorsports Camaro, and slammed into the outside wall.

At the end of Lap 1, it was Reddick who led van Gisbergen, Kyle Larson, Ty Gibbs, and Chris Buescher.

On Lap 4, van Gisbergen got to the outside of Reddick out of the back stretch chicane after the #45 hit the kerb awkwardly. That gave van Gisbergen the inside for the front stretch chicane, and he duly took the lead.

Reddick couldn’t keep pace with van Gisbergen and was soon under attack from Larson, who took second place on Lap 8 in the #5 Hendrick Motorsports Camaro.

Tyre wear dominated the discussion early in Stage 1 and van Gisbergen foreshadowed pitting well before the end of the break. He pitted on Lap 14 with a 4.5-second lead over Larson and the #88 returned to the race in sixth behind a bunch of cars that hadn’t pitted.

Van Gisbergen worked his way forward, and with six laps to go in Stage 1 got back to the lead with a pass on Buescher at Turn 7.

SVG and his team mulled pitting before the end of the break, but decided to stay out and took the Stage 1 win ahead of Larson, Gibbs, Bell, and Ross Chastain.

Pole position winner Reddick slumped to 26th after electing to run long on the first set of tyres and pit late in the stage.

Van Gisbergen led the lion’s share of the field to the pits on Lap 27 during the stage break and lost one spot to Larson.

Allmedinger led the field to green on the Lap 30 restart while SVG resumed the race in 12th. In one lap, he shot to sixth and had Reddick in his crosshairs.

HUGE LOCKUP FROM @CarsonHocevar

📺: @USANetwork pic.twitter.com/V11VCJFCnv

— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) October 5, 2025

Hocevar found himself in more trouble when he lost control of his #77 Camaro and slid into the side of Playoffs driver Austin Cindric, damaging the #2 Team Penske Mustang on Lap 32.

Van Gisbergen began to bemoan handling issues with his car, noting lower tyre pressures that were causing his car to bottom out on the embankment and lock up under brakes.

“Yeah, these tyres are shit,” van Gisbergen radioed on Lap 37.

“I used them up early with the low pressure, and now I’ve got nothing.”

Despite his apparent struggles, van Gisbergen made his way back to the lead on Lap 41 thanks to some cars stopping for tyres and a series of passes on Buescher and Allmendinger.

Before pitting just shy of Stage 2 ending with three laps to go, van Gisbergen established a seven-second lead over Larson. Bell in third was another three seconds back.

Ryan Blaney, who ran long, won Stage 2 in the #12 Team Penske Mustang ahead of Reddick and Chase Elliott in the #9 Hendrick Motorsports Camaro. Van Gisbergen was fifth behind teammate Chastain.

Once the front-runners pitted under yellow, van Gisbergen resumed the lead for the Lap 56 restart. He got the jump on Larson, who Bell pipped in a frenetic restart.

The first, and only, caution for a crash came on Lap 58 when Austin Dillon slammed the #3 Richard Childress Racing Camaro into the tyres exiting Turn 5.

Racing resumed on Lap 62 – and Larson returned serve, taking second away from Bell.

Larson overtakes SVG for a new race leader 🤯

📺: @USANetwork pic.twitter.com/ttvqn4Nb9a

— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) October 5, 2025

Larson, on Lap 63, dived to van Gisbergen’s inside at Turn 7 and sent the Kiwi up the embankment. They ran side-by-side down the back straight and Larson took the lead into the chicane. Bell took advantage of van Gisbergen too, passing him out of the chicane.

“I just don’t have the grip early on,” van Gisbergen radioed to his team.

On Lap 69, van Gisbergen’s crew chief told him to go get the race leaders, but the Kiwi said he had nothing for them.

“I’ve got no grip, man. No grip,” he said. “My rears are already done.”

On Lap 71, Bell got loose entering Turn 7 and van Gisbergen pounced, taking second place back. Moments later, the #20 Camry pitted. On Lap 72, Larson pitted from the lead with a 2.3-second advantage over van Gisbergen.

Van Gisbergen responded, pitting on Lap 73. He made quick work of the off-sequence cars, and on Lap 75 trailed Larson by six seconds.

On Lap 80, van Gisbergen got by Bell at the Turn 7 hairpin. At the end of the lap, SVG was 3.9 seconds in arrears of the lead.

As the final planned pit stops approached, van Gisbergen ate into Larson’s lead. On Lap 84, the gap stood at 1.5 seconds. Bell pitted with 25 laps to go on Lap 85, having dropped back more than six seconds behind Larson.

On Lap 87, van Gisbergen retook the lead at Turn 7. Larson pitted on Lap 89 with a two-second deficit to van Gisbergen in a bid to recover the lost time.

The Kiwi ran long, and on Lap 91 pitted for the final time. SVG lost some time entering his pit bay as Dillon exited, forcing the #88 to lock up.

Van Gisbergen returned to the road behind Larson and Bell. He made quick work of Bell, passing him at Turn 7 on Lap 95 and set about hunting Larson for the lead.

One lap later, van Gisbergen got to Larson’s left rear corner at the hairpin. He threw a late lunge, and the #88 couldn’t get far enough up the inside of the #5 car.

At the chicane, van Gisbergen dived down the inside and pushed Larson onto the high kerb. Moments later, Larson returned serve and nudged van Gisbergen at the chicane.

That compromised van Gisbergen and Larson got the lead back at Turn 1 and hung the #88 out in the marbles, which allowed Bell through. Bell’s time in second place was short-lived, however. At Turn 7, SVG retook the place.

On Lap 98, van Gisbergen repeated the dive bomb at the chicane, clearing Larson for the lead.

SVG AND LARSON ARE NECK AND NECK #NASCARPlayoffs | 📺: @USANetwork pic.twitter.com/ui99jlUMYK

— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) October 5, 2025

Then, with nine laps to go, van Gisbergen reported a problem.

“I think I’ve got a tyre issue,” he said.

“The right rear went extremely hot. It’s got a vibration. It’s really hot.”

At the same time, Larson pitted. Van Gisbergen considered pitting, but his team told him the deficit would be five seconds to Bell and too great a gap to overcome late.

Van Gisbergen was told to manage his tyre issue. Despite the drama, van Gisbergen was able to bring it home more than 15 seconds clear of Larson, who put a pass on Bell on the penultimate lap at the chicane.

Speaking post-race, van Gisbrgen said he enjoyed the biff and barge.

“I gave him a little bump at (Turn)  by accident and he just slammed me, and that all set it off,” he explained.

“I’m all for it. It was fun and I hope he’s not too pissed off. Hope it was good to watch too.”

The NASCAR Cup Series continues at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with the first race of the Round of 8 in the Playoffs on October 13 (AEDT).

Results: NASCAR Cup Series Bank of America Roval 400, Charlotte Motor Speedway

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