Van Gisbergen scored finishes of fifth and fourth in Heat 1 and Heat 2 respectively before lining up eighth for the feature race.
Heading into the first turn, New Zealand speedway legend Michael Pickens and American driver Jonathan Allard made contact.
Allard leapt into the air before rolling. Pickens lost control of his car and also flipped while the pack of cars piled in behind.
Dean Cooper and Matthew Leversedge also rolled and several more cars were caught up in the crash, including van Gisbergen who suffered damage to his steering and wing.
In total, five cars retired after the first lap following the pile-up.
Jamie Duff went on to win the 20-lap race in the 71A from 88M driver Keaton Dahm and Luke Brown in the 89A.
It’s the second serious incident for van Gisbergen in a week after he rolled at Baypark Speedway on Boxing Day.
Van Gisbergen’s speedway season continues on January 4 at Western Springs Speedway with the New Zealand Midget Championship.