Leigh Diffey explains impact Shane van Gisbergen has had on NASCAR, Supercars relationship

A few NASCAR personalities are having a time in Australia this week. That includes Leigh Diffey who is back home for Supercars. The Adelaide Grand Final has a little bit of American flair and Diffey is the perfect man to help bridge the gap between the USA and Australia.

Austin Cindric is racing in Supercars, Jesse Love is in Super2 this week, and Leigh Diffey is also hanging around. Doing a little bit of guest commentating and broadcasting, Diffey is representing NASCAR in a familiar place.

Diffey made his imprint on Supercars before he made his way to the United States. He has a lot of thoughts on Shane van Gisbergen and the newfound relationship between NASCAR and the Supercars.

“It’s the intrigue factor. It’s like, A, who is this guy?” Diffey said in a Supercars video with Jesse Love. “Where has he come from? And why is he this good? Now, that starts as Jesse mentioned on the road course and street course racing but now Shane has really started to turn the corner, pardon the pun, on the ovals. You remember earlier this year, Kyle Larson said, if SVG learns the ovals, how to race the ovals, we’re all in trouble. We’re starting to see that, because he had a succession of top-15 finishes.

“While that might not sound all that fantastic, it is, with nearly a 40-car field. So, Shane has been, I don’t want to say an accidental ambassador, but that’s the way it’s happened. Just through the way he’s carried himself, the way he’s raced, the way he goes in very respectfully to a totally new category that he doesn’t know anything, didn’t know anything about as far as the driving perspective. Now he knows a lot. The road course prowess, street course prowess. It’s an amazing story that’s had an impact on champions like Jesse. So, it’s terrific, it just keeps getting better.”

Leigh Diffey has noticed NASCAR-Supercars crossover

With drivers like Cam Waters, Will Brown, Brodie Kostecki, and more coming to America from Supercars, it is clear Shane van Gisbergen has had an impact on both series. It is also clear that SVG’s win in his debut in 2023 was a feat for the ages. Genuinely.

Austin Cindric is not struggling. But he has had more time behind the wheel now than SVG did in Chicago when the race started in 2023. Cindric is being cautious and has only been able to best a couple of drivers in practice and the sprint race. Jesse Love is a second off the leaders’ pace in Super2 practice and qualifying.

Leigh Diffey has seen a lot of racing in Australia and the United States. NASCAR and Supercars are closer now more than ever before. I have a feeling that it won’t stop here, either, as hese drivers get comfortable bouncing back and forth between the two series.