NASCAR holds the sixth of ten Playoff races and the final of three second-round races Sunday on the ROVAL at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Shane van Gisbergen will make his second Cup Series start on the 2.42-mile oval configurated road course at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Last season at the ROVAL, Van Gisbergen piloted the No. 13 Kaulig Racing entry and started in the pole position, his first Cup Series Career pole. Van Gisbergen recorded a seventh-place finish after getting spun in the final stage.
Last Sunday at Kansas Speedway, Van Gisbergen recorded his best oval finish in his career, made more impressive by starting a lap behind the field after a penalty forced an opening-lap stop-and-go pitstop. His previous best oval finish was a 12th-place finish at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway in 2024. Sunday’s finish also marked his 10th top-10 of his 45 Cup race career.
“It was good to get our first top-ten in Kansas,” said van Gisbergen. “Wasn’t ideal that we had to go a lap down at the start but just continued to work our way forward. Took me some time to get confident, but the car was really good and it allowed me to have confidence in myself as the race progressed. Really stoked for that finish and proud of all my guys on the 88 team. We are getting a lot better at these (ovals).
“I’m excited about Charlotte. I always enjoy turning right (laughs). It’s a track I’ve been too before, and I did decent there last year in both Cup and Xfinity. It’s definitely a little different than your average road course, but it’s a lot of fun. Hopefully it will be a great weekend!”
Trackhouse Racing driver Ross Chastain enters the road course race ninth of 12 drivers in the playoffs, just 13 points below the cutoff. To advance to the third round, he’ll need to be above the cutline after Sunday’s race.
NASCAR will eliminate four drivers from the playoffs every three races until the final four drivers battle for the championship in a winner-take-all race at Phoenix Raceway in Avondale, Arizona, on Nov. 2.
Teammates Shane van Gisbergen and Daniel Suárez should both be in a group of favorites battling for victory Sunday.
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