Kiwi Driver, Shane van Gisbergen has made no secret in the that a move away from Supercars wasn’t off the cards as he sought fulfilment in this golden era of his career, something he was unsure the new Generation 3 Camaro Supercar could offer.
But with some time behind the wheel and undoubtedly at the negotiation table, fans can rejoice in the mutual decision for the star to stay with Red Bull Ampol Racing, for at least another two years.
Van Gisbergen’s Red Bull era has been hugely successful having joined Triple Eight Race Engineering at the beginning of the 2016 season, SVG won his first Drivers’ Championship in the same year. He now has 170 career podiums, more than Supercars legend and Triple Eight teammate Craig Lowndes (169 podiums), and rapidly closing in on seven-time Supercars Champion and current Team Principal of Triple Eight, Jamie Whincup (237 podiums).
Over his tenure at Triple Eight, SVG has helped the team achieve four Teams’ Championships (2016, 2018, 2021, 2022). He also won the Adelaide 500 in 2017 and 2018, and the Supercars Enduro Cup alongside Alex Premat in 2016. Beyond his illustrious Supercars Championship career, SVG is also a Bathurst 12 Hour and New Zealand Grand Prix winner.
“Extending with Red Bull Ampol Racing was a no-brainer for me. It’s certainly exciting to continue with the best team in pit lane and I’m stoked to be able to stay. Said van Gisbergen.
“I’ve never been happier at this team. The coolest moment for me, and one that really solidified my decision was the team repairing my car after I had that shunt at the Australian Grand Prix [Melbourne 400] – everyone stuck in to help each other to get #97 fixed. Even though we missed the next practice session, to come out and put the car on pole in qualifying was amazing. Seeing how much that meant to everyone was a special moment, and to then win that race was unreal. It’s such a fantastic team environment at the moment, and we have a great crew that I love working with.
“The best thing about our sport is that it’s always evolving. All these challenges we’ve had with the new cars will hopefully work themselves out as we keep updating the cars over the next few events – there’s always something to learn and always things to keep getting better at. It’s those challenges that keep it fresh, and working with this team to understand those challenges and make the cars better is what I really enjoy.
Team Principal and icon of the sport, Jaimie Whincup is equally happy for the relationship to continue.
“It’s always great news when you have the best driver in the country deciding to put his faith in the team at Triple Eight Race Engineering to give him a fast, reliable race car to showcase his skills.
“It’s a huge honour that Shane has chosen us to continue that relationship. We will of course continue to invest in him, his support crew, engineering and mechanics, to give him the best equipment to remain competitive in the sport.
“We as a team need the best drivers in the country to showcase our skills. At the end of the day, we’re an engineering company and we pride ourselves on building the best race cars and componentry and representing ourselves in the highest regard. One of those factors is that we need someone to get behind the wheel and showcase that work we do and represent the brand and our partners in the highest possible light, and we believe Shane is the best person for that. Said Whincup.
