‘Let’s keep building’: Van Gisbergen battles to 20th in Darlington

Van Gisbergen’s streak of set-up struggles continued in the #88 Chevrolet Camaro. The lion’s share of the race was spent battling mid-corner understeer and corner-exit oversteer.

Stage 1 and Stage 2 were effectively a right-off for the Kiwi, finishing the stages 26th and 30th, and van Gisbergen’s frustrations boiled over during the Lap 138 caution.

“So f***ing tight,” he radioed to his crew.

“Corner entry, I can’t roll any speed. Crack the throttle, and it’s just loose.

“Like out of [turn] two it’s out of control loose. It’s a completely different car on and off the throttle.”

On the Lap 144 race restart, he continued to bemoan his issues.

“It’s out of control, loose on exit,” he said. “We need to go back to what we had a few runs before.”

By Lap 170, van Gisbergen was fuming.

“I can’t turn down man,” he said.

“The most frustrating car I’ve ever driven. It’s ridiculous. I’m just crashing out of [turn] two. I have to be so careful. I can’t carry any speed into the corner. I just plough. It’s ridiculous.”

If he wasn’t burning the rear tyres off his car out of the corner, van Gibsergen was under-steering through the turns and torching the right front tyre.

“The right front is completely destroyed,” he remarked on Lap 221. “Holy shit, it’s dead man.”

On Lap 228 he continued, “F*** this is frustrating man. Just will not turn.”

Van Gisbergen and his team went back and forth discussing set-up changes and took a swing at the car for the final green flag pit stop.

Soon, van Gisbergen’s mood changed and the car came alive. After his penultimate pit stop, the New Zealander began to match the race leaders and marched forward from outside the top 30.

With just a few laps remaining, he wound up inside the top 20. Despite a green-white-chequered finish and another round of pit stops, van Gisbergen was able to finish 20th.

“Top 20 probably isn’t much but great start for us,” said van Gisbergen at the chequered flag.

“Thanks for hanging in there and doing everything you could to make it better. Great start. Let’s keep building on it. Thank you guys.”

🏆🏁 BACK-TO-BACK NASCAR CUP SERIES WINS FOR DENNY HAMLIN. He gets it done in Darlington! pic.twitter.com/tD8QF4O5Sx

— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) April 6, 2025

The race was won by Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin in a thrilling conclusion to the 297-lap race.

William Byron dominated the race, leading the most laps of any driver with 243 laps to his name.

The Hendrick Motorsports driver looked unstoppable. That was until the final round of green flag pit stops when he was undercut by several drivers.

Chief among them was 23XI Racing’s Tyler Reddick who shot to the lead ahead of teammate Christopher Bell and Byron.

Further afield was Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney, who climbed from the back end of the top 10, more 15 seconds in arrears, to challenge for the lead.

With just a handful of laps to go, Blaney passed Reddick for the lead. Moments later, Kyle Larson crashed for the second time out of Turn 2 after being hit by 23XI Racing driver Bubba Wallace.

Not at all what Ryan Blaney and the No. 12 team wanted to see. #NASCARonFS1 pic.twitter.com/B3LCPrXyAU

— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) April 6, 2025

That brought out the yellow with four laps to go and set up a green-white-chequered finish.

By that time, the leaders had burnt their tyres and the dash to the chequered flag prompted the front-runners to pit.

Denny Hamlin, who by that point was third, shot to the lead on the pit stop sequence to head Reddick, Byron and Blaney.

The #11 Toyota Camry got the best getaway of anyone and was unchallenged for the win, leading the rest of the field in his wake.

It marked back-to-back wins for Hamlin after triumphing at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

The race featured eight cautions. Larson brought out the first one on Lap 5 when he lost control of his #5 Hendrick Motorsports Camaro out of Turn 2 and nose-dived the wall.

The Lady in Black is giving them all a hard time today.

Trouble late in Stage 1 for Carson Hocevar and Riley Herbst. #NASCARonFS1 pic.twitter.com/mVFsBuv2oE

— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) April 6, 2025

Carson Hocevar spun his #77 Spire Motorsports Camaro on Lap 25 after he hit the outside wall and punctured his tyres.

Hocevar found himself in more strife on Lap 82 when he came across the nose of the #35 Camry driven by 23XI Racing’s Riley Herbst and spun.

Brad Keselowski spun after the wheel nut on his #6 RFK Racing Ford Mustang came loose. The caution came out several laps later for the debris in Lap 138.

Josh Berry crashed his #21 Wood Brothers Racing Mustang on Lap 194 in similar fashion to Larson after a brush with Reddick.

Results: NASCAR Cup Series Goodyear 400, Darlington Raceway