The three-time Supercars champion who boldly switched to stock car racing has shown in the NASCAR Cup Series he is regularly the best at turning right.
In winning five of the six road course races this year, SVG set new records and could continue doing so if he continues his streak of success into next year.
One thing missing from his rap sheet is an oval win, but he’ll have you know he’s not alone.
“I don’t have an oval win, I guess – but there are a lot of drivers in the field that don’t have a Cup oval win,” said van Gisbergen.
“I’m not alone there, but I know I have a lot of work to do to get better on ovals. I feel like we’ve made some big steps the last couple of months.”
Asked whether he would trade one of his road course wins for an oval win, van Gisbergen replied emphatically: “I have to earn it.”
“We had some really good runs going,” he said. “But yeah, we’ve really got to earn a win.”
Van Gisbergen isn’t one to set goals – and despite a breakthrough top 10 at Kansas and short-lived top five run at Las Vegas, he hasn’t got a timeline on a breakout result.
“I don’t have a schedule on it, but I feel like it’s been general progression throughout the year,” he explained.
“We ran eighth to 15th last week (at Las Vegas) most of the race, which was awesome.
“Qualifying has gotten a lot better. I had some really good racing with people until I got wrecked out.
“It’s been a blast being competitive and showing a lot of promise and I feel a lot in the car now, like I know what to ask for, I know what it should feel like to have the car balanced.
“When you get that on an oval, it’s an awesome feeling.”
Van Gisbergen said he’s looking at two of the top NASCAR Cup Series teams, Hendrick Motorsports and Joe Gibbs Racing, for inspiration.
“There are still more levels to it,” he said.
“I am racing around a whole bunch of different drivers now… you look at what they can do, and I’m like, how do I get to that bit now?
“I’ve just got to keep working at it and keep trying to improve every week.”
On Monday, October 20, van Gisbergen will line up 31st for the YellaWood 400 at Talladega Superspeedway.
His Trackhouse Racing teammates Ross Chastain and Daniel Suarez will start 24th and 26th respectively.
The 188-lap race is often a chaotic one, and van Gisbergen said wrapping his head around the strategy is still something he is getting accustomed to.
“It’s a hard way to strategise to put yourself in the right spot,” said SVG.
“You want to be greedy and get up there early, but then you have to put more fuel in.
“There’s a balance there that I haven’t really got yet.
“You see the top guys here are just good at placing themselves in the second or third row on the inside and just sitting there, saving fuel. I need to figure that out.”
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