NASCAR CUP SERIES
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
DAYTONA 500 MEDIA DAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUOTES
FEBRUARY 12, 2025
Shane van Gisbergen, driver of the No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet – DAYTONA 500 Media Day Quotes
Q. Are race car drivers athletes?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: I guess so. I don’t really know how to answer that.
Q. Aren’t you strong and built like an ox?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Yeah, but not compared to others.
Q. What do you have to work on specifically to be good at racing?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: It’s probably like mental strength, I guess, focusing on something for a long period of time, consistency. We are in the car for a long period of time, but you don’t have to be particularly fit to do it or strong.
Yeah, again, I don’t…
Q. What about the endurance part?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: It’s more mental. Some tracks are physical, but most aren’t. It’s normally just the heat, yeah.
Q. How fast do you drive on an interstate?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: The speed limit.
Q. I feel like you guys aren’t telling the truth when you answer that way.
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Speed limit, yeah (laughter).
Q. Helio said you have been working with him. Do you feel comfortable he’s going to understand this style of racing?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: I guess he’ll be good. He gets that practice in the Duels and he doesn’t have the pressure. He still wants to qualify in probably. He’s got that fallback plan I guess.
The hardest thing we talked about is the pit lane limiter. In other series we a press button, hold our foot flat, the speed works it out. Here you really have to concentrate on your braking on pit road, then you got to find the speed. It’s so hard to hold the speed. Then you’re looking for your pit box. That’s probably the most difficult part.
Yeah, I’m sure in the racing stuff he’ll be fine. It’s just all the procedures here are very, very different.
Q. You ran a lot of seasons in Supercars. What is it like preparing for a NASCAR Cup Series season full-time?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Yeah, it’s pretty similar, I guess. The pre-season buildup is kind of the same. Yeah, now that we’re going be racing every week, I’ve never done 36 weeks in the same series. I’ve done it in other series.
Yeah, it’s going to be full on, yeah.
Q. Compared to your rookie year in Supercars, how does your rookie year in Cup feel emotionally-wise?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: That was a long time ago, man. It was 2007 that I did that. I don’t really know.
Yeah, I feel like a rookie. I feel like everything is new. I feel like I have a lot to learn and improve on and prove myself there. Probably similar to what I thought back then, yeah.
Q. Is it pretty cool to think about you’re going to be in the Daytona 500? Is that still a special thing for you?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Yeah, for sure. I found it difficult to answer that question today. The race is obviously still massive, but it’s not massive where I’m from. I guess it’s like the Bathurst, Le Mans 24. Watching the pre-race stuff last year, being here to spectate the race was awesome. You see the scale of it.
Yeah, I try mentally to treat it like another race, prepare like I would every other race. Try not to get too hyped and focus on doing my thing Sunday.
Q. The difference between the Supercars schedule and NASCAR schedule, how has it been adjusting to Speedweeks, six or seven days?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: That’s what we do every week in Supercars. Wouldn’t be as big as this, the media, but so much more to do. It would be spread out. You’d end up pissed off at the world.
NASCAR, you turn up, a little bit of media, go racing. It’s all about the racing stuff. I personally enjoy that much more.
I guess you kind of have to, racing every week. You’re only there for two or three days. All about the racing, yeah.
Q. In a recent interview you compared speedway racing almost as being out like a lamb for slaughter. How do you prepare for something like this?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: That was in reference I think the first Talladega I did. I was running good, then four or five laps to go got shuffled to the back. I was coming 30th or whatever. It doesn’t matter. Came around the last corner, and I was at the back with Kyle Busch. There was a crash out of four. Saw it happening. Backed down. He just stayed flat out, just drove into the crash carelessly. I’m like, What are you doing?
But they treat the cars here like they’re disposable. There’s another one back at the shop. Every point matters. I kind of slowed down, second, third gear, wabbled through the shunt, then came across the line. He’s still crashing and spinning. The car is completely destroyed. My thing is brand-new, ready to race next week. He gained three or four spots. Just the mentality for these races is so, so different to anything there is.
Yeah, I guess I just have to pull my belts tighter and get amongst it.
Q. Have you had enough time doing the full season in Xfinity to decide you like superspeedways or short tracks or road courses?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Again, it comes back to like this week. I don’t try and get caught up in the races that are good and bad. You don’t want to be, Oh, I’m excited for Daytona. Oh, we’re going to Dover. Something like that.
I try to be excited for every race, try and approach them with all the same amount of prep and focus.
Q. Do you feel like you’re used to this type of racing yet?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: No, no.
Q. Do you think you ever will be used to it?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: I certainly enjoyed it more. I used to watch it on TV. Did my first one, This is a bit boring. Just flat out the whole way. When you’re in the race, there’s so much going on.
Xfinity was pretty flat out and strung out. In this you’re jockeying for position, fuel saving, trying to place yourself in the right spots. There’s so much more to it. It’s fascinating as a driver learning these different skills, placing yourself right for the green-flag starts. Pretty cool learning.
I certainly feel like I can be in it now. I remember my first Talladega, I’d get in the battles, then people would put me four-wide on purpose just to single me out and send me to the back because they didn’t want me in there. I guess I was driving like an idiot. Now I feel like I can flow with the guys, have the right momentum, judge the runs a bit better.
The last Talladega I was pushed to the lead and held the lead for a while. Definitely feel like I’m part of it now. Happy that I don’t have yellow stripes on my car. I feel like I’m better at it now.
Q. You’ve been at this racetrack before. How are the emotions different coming here knowing this is the first of 36 as a full-time Cup driver?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Yeah, again, I don’t have that excitement. I just try and stay calm throughout the week and save it for the race.
Again, I remember first time at Rolex coming through the tunnel. The second time I come through I tried to get air off the top of it. It was pretty fun (laughter). That was Cooper MacNeil. A bad influence.
Yeah, it’s always cool flying into this track, coming and seeing how massive it is. Yeah, just staying calm, ready for Sunday.
Q. You talked in the past about learning the car, how it’s so much different. How does that compare with trying to understand the draft? Helio will try to do this without experience. Is this drafting harder?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Yeah, like driving out just then, the car is on the stops basically to try and get speed for a single car, it’s like driving a go-kart.
I was also driving one-handed easy flat. I hadn’t seen the track for a while. Grandma could jump in and do it, it feels like it’s so easy. We are doing 49s or 50s then. Then we get in the draft later on, we’ll be doing 47s.
Especially when you’re at the back and in the middle, hate being in the middle, there’s no air lift, the car feels like it’s out of the track, you’re basically drifting on corner entries. You got 35 other maniacs flat out as well pushing you around. It’s a rush. I think my heart rate barely got up on the single cars. I’m like at 150 in the pack. It’s a rush.
Q. Anybody else in the Supercars world you would like to see come out and try this race?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: There’s a few of them. Cam Waters wants to do some more this year. He was pretty decent in the tracks. Will Brown. Brodie Kostecki. There are a few guys.
The Xfinity race I’m trying to get one of them to drive in the (indiscernible) car. It would be awesome. I’d love for more guys to come over afterward try it. There’s some good, talented drivers there. Love to see them come out here.
Q. Anybody from this side of the world in NASCAR you’d like to see try Supercars?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: I would have loved to see how Kyle Busch went last year in the Supercar. It would have been very difficult, but I’m sure if he took it seriously, he would have done really well. Hopefully that happens this year. There’s talks actually Kyle Larson might go and do it.
Love to help them if they have any questions. I’d be really interested to see how they went.
Q. How important is it to get off to a good start this year?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: It would be amazing. If you can just get ahead of the points, settle in. I always love to start championships being an accumulator sort of. That was my sort of strategy. Even in the weeks where you can’t be up front, get the best results you can, minimize mistakes.
If we start well, get in a good rhythm, everyone stays positive, that really gets you off to a good start for the year.
Q. Any difference in preparation for this year knowing you have every weekend? Different than a part-time stint?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Yeah, last year I’d never done it before. This year I wanted to have a routine, know what I’m doing every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, prep for the week, have my Thursday off as a day to do my own stuff outside of racing.
Yeah, it’s been pretty full on, especially with a whole new team. The 88 guys at Trackhouse, just learning them. Yeah, just trying to get in a routine, every week try and be refreshed for it.
Q. Ross said you guys kind of bounce things off each other in terms of learning. How has that worked for you? Do you feel like the communication has gotten stronger?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Yeah, for sure. I think that dynamic in Trackhouse has changed a little bit, which for me is good. Everyone works a lot closer together. The crew chiefs. It’s got to be a good thing.
But yeah, at the sim, all our driving notes are open now. Yeah, I obviously learn and lean on those guys as much as I can. Daniel and Ross are very, very different in the way they go about it, the way they think and describe things. Of course, I’ll be different again.
It’s paying back at the moment because I help them for road course stuff. Yeah, it’s a pretty cool dynamic at the moment. I’m enjoying that.
Q. With four drivers from four different countries for this race, the same team, does it add some importance in terms of having maybe some more worldwide attention on this race?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: It’s just amazing what Justin and Trackhouse have achieved. Have such a diverse lineup at a race like this, it’s epic. Four different nationalities, we’re probably going to be talking about loose, tight, oversteer and understeer in different languages but probably meaning the same thing.
It’s been really cool having all four cars lined up at the shop on Monday. The workers, the mechanics, they all signed the cars. It’s a really cool moment.
Q. Are you a guys that sets goals for what you want to achieve, a successful season if we do X, Y and Z?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: No, no, never. You always have ambitions. But I never really set goals and targets. I just try to prepare, do my best every week. As long as I keep moving forward, I’ll be happy.
Q. You raced the short course at COTA.
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Yeah, but we’re doing a different one now. The one we did at Supercars was terrible. Had a really big bump in it. These cars wouldn’t be able to handle it. Would have been worse. What we had at the Roval last year, got taken out the last chicane. They’ve used another layout, so it should be better.
Q. (No microphone.)
SHANE van GISBERGEN: It’s more passing zones. You only lose that back hairpin. Gain another passing zone out of it. I think it will be better for racing.
Q. If you can’t win, who is your pick for the 500?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Ross or Daniel or Helio. Trackhouse guys (smiling).
Q. You go 200 miles an hour. You’re not afraid of speed. Is there anything you are afraid of?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Snakes and spiders. Don’t really have them here, which is good. Australia wasn’t fun (smiling).
Q. If you could have a celebrity spotter for a race, who would it be and why?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: I would not want a celebrity on my radio.
Q. How about the Daytona 500? Event when you think about making decisions in the Daytona 500, you’re an analytical guy, raced a lot, how do you balance being analytical versus committed and knowing that you have it without overthinking?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: I don’t know. I guess that’s what I’ve done all my life.
Q. Overthink?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: No. It’s all in preparation, right? You got to have that clear mind when you’re racing, things become instinct. Obviously there’s a lot of teamwork, too, with the spotter. Spotter is going to be guiding me.
Spotters are probably the most important thing of the superspeedway racing. I just kind of trust his guidance or my crew chief will be telling me when we don’t need to save fuel, so…
Yeah, it’s very different this kind of racing.
Q. When you make the move, you have to be in your head 100% committed.
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Yeah, but then you have to make sure you have friends in this kind of racing, make sure you got the right kind of cars behind you. I never really had to do that before. You have to make sure it’s a teammate or a Chevy. If you go three-wide, a Toyota is not going to push you.
Q. You’ve had to worry about that?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: No, no. You just race in every other series in the world. It’s very, very different how it works here.
Q. How do you know who is in Chevys and who is not?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: I’m still figuring that out, yeah (laughter). I don’t know who’s who yet.
Q. Are you old enough to remember the actual Thunderdome in Australia?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: No.
Q. Did you ever watch any videos of that?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Yeah, yeah, I watched videos there. The old HQs they used to race.
I’ve driven at that track, the circuit next door. I also competed in drifting on the oval. It was pretty cool. But never saw the cars racing there.
Q. What is drifting on an oval like?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: We kind of started on the tri-oval and ended up in the pit lane sort of area. Used the small oval.
Q. (Question about ice drifting.)
SHANE van GISBERGEN: I’ve always wanted to do that. My father-in-law, he was on snow drifting this week. Yeah, I was pretty jealous the pictures he was sending.
Q. Would it be hard?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Yeah, it would be difficult, but it would be so much fun.
Q. You would have an advantage.
SHANE van GISBERGEN: I hope so.
Q. You’re a pretty tall guy. What kind of adjustments do they have to make inside the car for you?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: This is like one of the roomiest cars I’ve ever driven. I could get enough leg room. There’s a lot of head height in these cars. Actually, yeah, feel pretty good in these.
Q. More so than other cars?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Yeah, yeah. A single seater is obviously tight. The newest edition Supercar was terrible. It was really small. All the big guys struggled.
Yeah, this car is really comfortable for almost everyone.
Q. Do you like it like that?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Yeah, yeah. I could set this car up how I wanted. You can personalize it so much, so… It was really cool.
Q. If you need a relief driver, probably going to need some extra pillows.
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Need a baby seat for them, yeah (laughter).
Q. Is there any one track that’s going to provide a challenge that maybe you didn’t get a good enough taste on in the Xfinity ranks?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Probably Bristol will be tough, yeah.
Q. Why is that?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: It’s just such an intense track. We only went there once. That’s pretty early on this calendar. It’s going to be difficult.
Q. What do you think about the changes to COTA? Is that going to change how you approach that track?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: No. But I reckon it’s a good adjustment, shorter track, more laps, more times past the fans. We don’t lose any passing spots. I think it’s going to make good racing, the new corner.
Q. What about braking zones? Will it remove some you depend on?
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Only one real braking zone, then it really shortens the other one off the back straight. I think there’s still going to be passing zones, yeah.
Q. They’re still going to have to catch you.
SHANE van GISBERGEN: Yeah, that would be nice.
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