Kevin Harvick reacts to Shane van Gisbergen Charlotte win, shouts out Justin Marks

Shane van Gisbergen had hardly been challenged on any road course this season entering this past Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at the Charlotte ROVAL. That all changed at the ROVAL.

Van Gisbergen had to fight for the win, battling throughout the race with Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell. Kevin Harvick said that if you’re going to beat van Gisbergen on a road course, what Larson and Bell did was the formula. Still, it was van Gisbergen who cruised to his fifth victory of the season.

“I think SVG — he had to battle for it,” Harvick said on Tuesday’s Happy Hour podcast. “The 20 car [Bell] and the 5 car [Larson] banging doors with him, but I think that’s where it’s at. I think you got to put yourself in a position to rough him up a little bit when you get in the scenarios to try to race with him. When you have the opportunity, you have to try to put him in a bad spot in order to beat him.

“He was able to keep his head on and just kind of back up when Larson and Bell got by him. Just kind of back up and wait for the right opportunity, let the 5 car cool down. He was mad that he divebombed him and put him in a bad spot. I think that in the end, just proved how dominant he is on these road courses with his ability in the car.”

Shane van Gisbergen does it again on a road course

Van Gisbergen led 57-of-109 laps at the ROVAL. He beat Larson to the start/finish line by a whopping 15.160 seconds. Van Gisbergen is only a rookie, but he’s got quite the case to already be the best road course racer in the history of NASCAR.

Harvick gave credit to Trackhouse Racing owner Justin Marks for putting van Gisbergen in the No. 88 Chevrolet full-time in 2025. He called van Gisbergen’s rookie campaign a “fantastic year.”

“Kudos to Justin Marks for recognizing what he can bring to the table,” Harvick said. “I don’t care what tracks they are, when you get five wins in a year in the Cup Series, it puts you in a position to have the conversation of having a fantastic year.

“Not just a good year, but a fantastic year for any driver in the Cup Series to win five races. It’s not just road courses, you gotta make the pit stops, you gotta make the calls, so they’ve had a great year.”