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Shane Van Gisbergen has received high praise after a successful run at the ‘Roar Before the 24’ test ahead of the prestigious Daytona 24 Hours race.
The 24-year-old Kiwi was a surprise inclusion for the recently completed test at the famous American venue where he joined the Alex Job Racing #22 Porsche 911 GT America squad.
It was the V8 Supercar racer’s first experience of top flight sportscar action and the infamous banked Daytona circuit.
Giving away valuable experience, Van Gisbergen managed to produce a solid display alongside team-mates and regulars Cooper MacNeil, Leh Keen and LP Dumoulin.
After three days of running, the #22 car finished the test fourth fastest in the highly competitive GTD class, with a best time of 1.48.269s, just three tenths behind class leaders Flying Lizard Motorsports new Audi R8.
Van Gisbergen’s efforts earned high praise from team owner Alex Job ahead of the Daytona 24 Hours on January 25-26.
“We went through all of the steps of our testing program this weekend,” Job said.
“The drivers all got a lot of laps and I think we have settled on a good baseline car set-up for when we come back here in two weeks for the race.
“LP has run with us before, but Shane is a newcomer to the series, our team and the track.
“He’s a true professional and was able to get up to speed in a hurry in the WeatherTech Porsche.”
The Auckland born racer, who drives for Tekno Autosports in the V8 Supercars Championship, admitted that he thoroughly enjoyed his first taste of racing on the banked Daytona circuit.
However, he did reveal the unique circuit layout led to him suffering from ‘arm pump’ during the session.
“It was crazy … when I took the car out for the first time and ran up on the high banking here at Daytona,” van Gisbergen said.
“I have never raced on anything like that before. I was hanging on way too tight and had a little arm-pump after my first run.
“I had the prototype cars passing me around the outside, it was nuts.
“The Porsche has a little less power than my Holden Commodore, but it has better grip and handling, so it is really fun to drive.
“Another big change for me is constantly looking in the mirror for faster cars coming up on you.
“In V8 Supercars all of the cars a pretty equal so you are focused forward.
“I got a good handle on it during the day and then had to relearn my reference points during the night.”
The Rolex Daytona 24 Hours endurance race will take place on January 25-26.
