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Shane van Gisbergen, pit crew earn pole position for NASCAR All-Star Open

JHby: Jonathan Howard05/16/25Jondean25
Shane van Gisbergen Indianapolis
Mandatory Credit: Matthew O'Haren-USA TODAY Sports

Who saw this coming?! Shane van Gisbergen and his pit crew just put themselves on the pole for the NASCAR All-Star Open. SVG is hoping that he can hold that pole position from start to finish and punch his ticket to Sunday’s race.

Shane van Gisbergen has not had a great season this year. His adjustment to ovals has not gone well. But his qualifying laps at North Wilkesboro, in his first trip to the track, were very impressive.

It isn’t uncommon to see road course racers excel on certain short tracks. Martinsville, is one that comes to mind. It is all about the braking zones and how good these road course racers are at hitting their marks.

Carson Hocevar will start on the front row with SVG. Drivers like Bubba Wallace, P2 and P6 in the last two years at Wilkesboro, had troubles. We will see which drivers rise to the occasion in the open race.

Shane van Gisbergen will try to race himself into the All-Star Race. He is looking to get a win on a road course this year and punch his ticket to the playoffs. Short of that, he is not going to make the postseason.

Trackhouse Racing is juggling a ton right now. SVG, Daniel Suárez, Ross Chastain, and Connor Zilisch. Four drivers for only three available seats. Both SVG and Suárez give you drivers capable of winning one or two races a year. But you know Suárez will consistently be better, and he has a chance to point his way to the playoffs most seasons.

Justin Marks has tough decisions ahead of him in the next two years. Talent, international stars, and a brand that continues to build year after year.

Shane van Gisbergen still has time to grow

Looking at the box score, just the straight up results on the scorecard, Shane van Gisbergen is struggling. But why is he struggling? Trackhouse Racing is not giving him or his teammates cars capable of qualifying well. That puts him behind and it makes it very difficult to move up through the field.

The Next Gen car is why SVG is in America and in NASCAR. The similarities to the Supercars race cars make it possible for him to contend for wins on every road course. However, the Next Gen car is also holding him back on ovals.

When Marcos Ambrose was with JTG Daugherty Racing and Richard Petty Motorsports, he had equipment that could help him in races. No, he wasn’t in cars that were elite, but there was enough daylight between the cars he drove and the other drivers in the field that it allowed him to excel on ovals early on in his Cup career.

During his rookie season in 2009, Ambrose recorded five top-10 finishes on ovals. Bristol was particularly good to Ambrose in his NASCAR career. SVG has shown flashes at Martinsville, and it is no surprise that he is doing so well at North Wilkesboro early on this weekend.

With Shane van Gisbergen, the Next Gen cars are as close as any field of Cup cars before them. So, it is harder for Trackhouse to give SVG a car that can help him have strong performances on ovals. What the Next Gen car gives on road courses, it also takes on ovals.