Shane van Gisbergen believes Trackhouse Racing’s plans are “pretty exciting” but maintains he has no NASCAR deal for 2024 yet.
The three-time Supercars champion has made it clear that he wants to leave that category and race in NASCAR next year, albeit maybe not full-time from the outset.
He said his phone was “running hot” in the days after his debut victory in Chicago, but was tight-lipped about who he might be in talks with when he addressed media at the Sydney Supercars event.
It is thought that several teams, including some from the Ford and Toyota ranks, have expressed interest in van Gisbergen’s services.
However, an expanded programme with Trackhouse, which is fielding him again this weekend on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, is a strong possibility.
“I’m still working hard on it,” van Gisbergen told select media, including Speedcafe, of his longer-term NASCAR plans.
“Still, my priority is my Australian team, Triple Eight, wanting to get them to have a replacement they’re happy with.
“As long as they’re happy with who’s going to replace me, I’ll be happy leaving.
“I’m trying to get something over here and work on it.
“I don’t have anything signed up, and I’m loving Trackhouse, where I am now, and the plans that Justin [Marks, co-owner] has proposed, I guess, for the future is pretty exciting.
“So, yeah, I’d love to be here and keep working, expand my career, I guess, and come over and have a crack.”
In favour of Trackhouse is that it is commercially strong, having attracted beer giant Anheuser-Busch as a sponsor of Ross Chastain’s #1 entry for 2024, while Enhance Health is back onboard after sponsoring SVG’s car in Chicago.
Meanwhile, Will Brown is now the firm favourite to take over van Gisbergen’s Red Bull Ampol Camaro seat at Triple Eight Race Engineering, notwithstanding he too is under contract for 2024 at his current team, Erebus Motorsport.
Van Gisbergen himself is thought to have played an active role in sourcing his replacement and he did not deny that, even if he suggested that conversations with peers were not initiated by him.
The New Zealander claims Triple Eight had a shortlist of three to four drivers to fill the vacancy which he would leave at Banyo.
“I read some article yesterday that I was ringing people, trying to make it work,” he said.
“But, I’ve had people ringing me about it, asking what the team’s like.
“I know there’s a shortlist of people on the team – I think there’s three or four guys – and all of them, I’d be comfortable with having to replace me.
“So, hopefully one of them comes off sooner rather than later and we can work on with it.
“But, I’m still loving being part of that team. It’s been good; the last round, we had a good one, and we’re still fighting pretty hard for this year’s championship.”
As was the case on the Chicago Street Circuit, van Gisbergen will again drive the ‘Project91’ entry this weekend at The Brickyard.
The #91 Camaro is a part-time entry which has only been rolled out three times before by the fledgling Trackhouse operation and, speaking in the immediate aftermath of the Windy City Triumph, Marks did not rule out expanding it to a full-time programme in 2024.
Then, the Indy drive was not locked in, while an oval debut in the Trucks Series at nearby Indianapolis Raceway Park this Friday night (local time) with Niece Motorsports was an initiative which came together even more quickly.
“No, definitely not beforehand,” replied van Gisbergen on whether or not this weekend’s racing was discussed pre-Chicago.
“I think that was it for the project for the year, and then once the race finished, obviously, we’re like, ‘We’ve got to come and do this again.’
“So, we had a look at the calendar, what was coming up. Watkins [Glen], where I had been before, that’s a clash next week [with The Bend Supercars event], but Indy wasn’t.
“We worked towards it and Enhance came onboard again, and they were stoked to go again.
“So, it’s pretty exciting, and hopefully we have a fun weekend again.
“And last week when I spoke to Justin, he’s like, ‘Oh, well, on the Friday night, there’s a Truck race; do you want to do that at IRP?’
“Initially, I thought that was on the road circuit on the same track – not an oval – so it’s all come together pretty quick, but it’s been a lot of fun doing it.”
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