Who knew a race car driver hailing from Supercars championship would give NASCAR drivers a run for their money? Ever since Shane van Gibsergen won the inaugural street race, he’s sort of etched his name on it. The Kiwi driver won three road races in the Xfinity Series last year, and in 2025, he’s bagged two Cup Series wins. He is the most winnigest foreign-born driver now after his Chicago triumph, even eclipsing Daniel Suarez. But why is he so hard to beat on track, where drivers need to turn right?
Michael McDowell made a bold claim before the Chicago race, and while he looked to stand firm on his words leading the stage 1, Lady Luck wasn’t by his side. Be it rain or untimely caution, everything seems to work out in SVG’s favor. Drivers can replicate the Kiwi speedster’s technique, but according to Ryan Blaney, that is a lost cause, at least for him.
SMT data is not enough to tackle the SVG domination on road courses
Blaney might be a NASCAR Cup Series champion, but when it comes to navigating the twists and turns of road courses, he’s still finding his feet. In his last 6 Cup starts on road courses, the Penske star has managed only one top 10 result, which came at Chicago last year. But every time, Blaney sees that he is going up against SVG, he accepts his fate. Sharing his take on the Kiwi driver while speaking on SiriusXM Radio, he stated, “The only time I watch him is on TV because I don’t see him during the race. He’s so far ahead of me. You’re not alone. You know, it’s not often that I get to be behind him and be like, man. Man, it honestly, it’s for me, it’s not really frustration. It’s a lot of admiration.”
The argument that a few fans make is that SVG is not unbeatable, and that is true to a certain extent. We saw Chris Buescher beat him fair and square at Watkins Glen last year, but trying to learn his technique and craft by leaning on SMT data is a far-fetched idea. And Blaney understands that he can’t replicate or match SVG’s racing on road and street circuits just by studying the data.
“Like I can’t go drive like Joey Logano, or I can’t go drive like Shane on road courses. Like you can take the little things of, okay, he’s, he’s beaten me here. I need to work on this corner. And I can, you know, you can kind of look at what the brake and throttle stuff he’s that he’s doing. And all right, you kind of think about that, but I just use it for where am I, where do I need to improve, whether my driving style or where do I got to get my car better?” The Penske driver added.
“For me it’s not really frustration, it’s a lot of admiration.”
Ryan @Blaney says @shanevg97 is “on another level” when it comes to racing on street courses.
Full Hour → https://t.co/MKhd9eLpQA pic.twitter.com/jo5LZtnZnm
— SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Ch. 90) (@SiriusXMNASCAR) July 11, 2025
It is worth noting that the next race is at Sonoma Raceway. Another road course race in Wine Country could lead to another win for the Trackhouse Racing driver. And if he does bag a third win, he will draw level with Denny Hamlin and Christopher Bell for winning three races in 2025. Not to forget the playoff bonus points he is stacking up along the way. If this SVG rocket continues to fly high, he just might have enough points to see through the Round of 16 and have a go at the Charlotte Roval to make a deep playoff run.
But before SVG can plot a playoff strategy, he has identified his area of improvement that he needs to work on.
SVG needs more practice time to adapt to cars on ovals
Gone are the days when NASCAR used to have long practice sessions, which allowed the teams and drivers to make changes before the qualifying laps. This has become the new normal since the Pandemic, and while they have brought it back to some tracks, it is not enough for a driver like SVG. Sharing his experience trying to adjust to the pace from practice to qualifying, the Kiwi driver stated, “You get one practice, 20 minutes, but the tires only last two or three laps right?”
“You started a lap time, and then by the end of practice, you’re second and a half slower. And then I’ve got to find a second to get to the pace, but qualifying comes around you gotta find second and a half and your next lap you’ve got one corner to feel it before you start your lap you don’t really know what you have underneath you. And it’s just a huge gap to try and find that next level,” SVG explained on the podcast.
Before heading into the Mexico race weekend, the driver of the #88 Chevy had three top 20 finishes on ovals like Charlotte, Kansas, and Michigan. So, he is making progress, and with the race at Brickyard coming up, SVG will look to replicate his last year’s performance, where he bagged a top 5 finish in the Xfinity race.
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