Shane van Gisbergen has been handed a lifeline in the ARCA Menards Series after initially failing to qualify for the race at Daytona International Speedway. A rival’s withdrawal elevated the Kiwi to 34th and into the automatic qualifying berths.
Van Gisbergen hit the track in Group 4 qualifying and was on the back foot early as a slow launch from pit road saw him lose the draft on track.
His best lap of 50.927 seconds, with an average speed of 176.724mph (284.41kmh), ended up as the 35th fastest of the 50 entries, four-tenths outside the automatic qualifying berths for the top 34.
In comparison, his fastest time in Friday’s practice was 49.512 seconds, producing an average speed of 181.774mph (292.53kmh). Had he replicated that time, he would have qualified seventh.
Six further places are reserved based on the 2023 Team’s Championship points and 2023 results to bring the starting total to 40. That would not have been enough for van Gisbergen to make the start.
Willie Mullins qualified on the pole for the race from the same group as van Gisbergen, with a time of 48.982 seconds topping Tim Richmond by 0.021 seconds. Less than one-tenth separated the top five drivers.
Van Gisbergen’s team, Pinnacle Racing Group, broke the news of the Kiwi’s elevation into the race on Twitter, with a post reading, “With the No. 7 car withdrawing from tonight’s ARCA race, (van Gisbergen’s) qualifying lap will now put him in the field, starting 34th.”
CCM Racing’s Eric Caudell, who had qualified 17th, was the withdrawal.
The Kiwi three-time Supercars champion’s participation is essential for licensing requirements to compete in Sunday’s Xfinity Series season-opener at the same venue.
His participation in the Xfinity Series would still have been possible had he not qualified for the ARCA race, depending on clearance from NASCAR based on his practice results. It’s believed that clearance had already been granted.
An incoming weather system in Florida has seen the ARCA Menards Series race brought forward to 10.30 pm today local time (4.30 pm NZT).
The Xfinity Series race is still scheduled to run at 11.00 am (NZ Time) on Sunday but may be pushed back a day depending on the severity of the weather event.
