Shane van Gisbergen produced a calm and calculated drive in Duel 1 at Daytona, climbing from 19th on the grid to finish sixth and lock in a 13th-place starting spot for the Daytona 500.
The Kiwi lined up 19th in the 23-car field for the 60-lap qualifying race for the NASCAR Cup Series, starting just behind former Trackhouse Racing teammate Daniel Suarez. From the outset, it was frantic. Ryan Preece, Kyle Busch, Corey Heim, Austin Dillon, and John Hunter Nemechek all took turns at the lead in the opening laps as the draft shuffled the order.
By Lap 6, three drivers had already shared the lead under green flag conditions. The outside lane formed briefly before fading, and the field settled into a long single-file train with Preece controlling much of the first half of the race. He led 29 laps and rarely left the top five, keeping a tight grip on track position.
While the front pack traded pushes and momentum, van Gisbergen focused on staying clean and working forward. By Lap 29, he had moved from 19th to 14th, and by Lap 39, he was up to 12th, running the inside line with Ross Chastain just ahead. It was steady progress rather than dramatic moves — the kind of approach often needed at Daytona.
The first caution came on Lap 45 when Noah Gragson and Casey Mears collided while attempting to enter pit road. That set up a tense final run to the finish.
After the restart, van Gisbergen held 12th, but with seven laps remaining, the inside lane stalled, and the outside surged. The shuffle dropped him back to 15th as Joey Logano took control at the front.
Then came the turning point. With four laps to go, Bubba Wallace was turned on the backstretch after contact from Austin Dillon, triggering a multi-car incident that collected several contenders and forced overtime.
Van Gisbergen lined up eighth for the green-white-checkered restart. Logano and Brad Keselowski battled side-by-side for the lead, and as the pack fanned out behind them, another crash erupted after contact between Suarez and Corey LaJoie. The caution flew again, freezing the field.
Logano was declared the winner, while van Gisbergen had done enough to stay clear of the wrecks. He crossed the line sixth — a gain of 13 positions from where he started.
It was a composed superspeedway performance from the Kiwi, avoiding trouble and putting himself in the right place when it counted. The result secures him 13th on the grid for the Daytona 500, giving him a solid platform for Monday’s 500-mile race at Daytona.
Header Image: Trackhouse Racing
