What began as a one-off Project 91 race in 2023, continued as a successful Xfinity Series campaign in 2024 and turned into a record-breaking NASCAR Cup Series run in 2025, will continue for years to come as Shane van Gisbergen and Trackhouse Racing announced a multiyear contract extension Friday.
Van Gisbergen became the winningest foreign-born driver in NASCAR history this year when the Auckland, New Zealand, native won three Cup Series races, pushing his total to four victories in 37 career races.
Friday’s agreement will keep the former V8 Supercars driver at Trackhouse Racing.
“I feel like Trackhouse Racing is my home,” said the 36-year-old Van Gisbergen.
“Trackhouse gave me the opportunity to race at Chicago in 2023. That was just a one-race deal, and everything that has happened since then is because of the chance Justin [Marks, Trackhouse founder and owner] took on me.
“The men and women at Trackhouse have helped me feel at home in this new challenge, and I’ve been loving every minute of it. We still have a lot of work to do, but I couldn’t be happier.”
Marks created Project 91 in 2022 to expand the organisation’s global reach by fielding a Cup Series entry for renowned international racing drivers. 2007 Formula One World Champion Kimi Räikkönen raced for Project 91 in 2022 at Watkins Glen International and in 2023 at Circuit of The Americas in Austin, Texas.
Van Gisbergen, though popular around the world, was little known to most of the NASCAR audience despite a resume that includes V8 Supercars Championships in 2016, 2021 and 2022, plus 80 wins and 48 pole positions, making him the fourth most successful driver in series history. He also won the Bathurst 1000 in 2020, 2022 and 2023.
The NASCAR world took notice at the Chicago Street Race in 2023 when he led nine laps and won the race by 1.259 seconds in overtime. Van Gisbergen became one of six foreign-born drivers to win a Cup Series race and the first driver since Johnny Rutherford in 1963 to win his first Cup Series start.
After signing a driver development contract with Trackhouse Racing, Van Gisbergen raced full-time with Kaulig Racing in the Xfinity Series in 2024, winning at Portland International Raceway, Sonoma Raceway and the Chicago Street Race. He also raced in 12 Cup Series races in 2024.
Trackhouse expanded to a third car in 2025, naming van Gisbergen the driver of the No. 88 Chevrolet. In his first full season in the Cup Series, he’s won the inaugural Mexico City race, the Chicago Street Race and at Sonoma. He also owns an Xfinity Series victory at the Chicago Street Race, driving for JR Motorsports.
“We are getting to watch one of the superstars of racing,” Marks said.
“What we are asking him to do carries a high degree of difficulty. He’s moved to the other side of the world, learned a new form of racing and at times dominated the competition. He’s one of the greatest.”
Van Gisbergen is rewriting the NASCAR record books. He is:
– Tied for most wins in a rookie season.
– Fastest to three wins in the Modern Era.
– Tied three consecutive road-course wins from pole.
– The most wins for a foreign-born driver in Cup Series history.
– First New Zealander to win a Cup Series race.
Header Image: Meg Oliphant / Getty Images
