Three-time Supercars Champion, and two-time Bathurst 1000 winner, Shane ‘SVG’ van Gisbergen has signed a multi-year contract extension with Red Bull Ampol Racing, where he’ll remain the driver of the #97 Chevrolet Camaro in the Supercars Championship.
“Extending with Red Bull Ampol Racing was a no-brainer for me,” the Kiwi said. “It’s certainly exciting to continue with the best team in pit lane and I’m stoked to be able to stay.
“I’ve never been happier at this team. The coolest moment for me, and one that really solidified my decision was the team repairing my car after I had that shunt at the Australian Grand Prix [Melbourne 400] – everyone stuck in to help each other to get #97 fixed. Even though we missed the next practice session, to come out and put the car on pole in qualifying was amazing. Seeing how much that meant to everyone was a special moment, and to then win that race was unreal. It’s such a fantastic team environment at the moment, and we have a great crew that I love working with.
“The best thing about our sport is that it’s always evolving. All these challenges we’ve had with the new cars will hopefully work themselves out as we keep updating the cars over the next few events – there’s always something to learn and always things to keep getting better at. It’s those challenges that keep it fresh, and working with this team to understand those challenges and make the cars better is what I really enjoy.
“I want to thank the team, our partners and our fans for their support. Triple Eight is a cool place to be a part of and I’m looking forward to the future.”
SVG joined Triple Eight Race Engineering at the beginning of the 2016 season, the same year he won his first Drivers’ Championship. Over his stellar career which began at Oran Park in 2007 as an 18-year-old, the Kiwi-native has amassed 77 wins from 489 races and 46 pole positions. Incredibly, he notched up his 170th career podium at the Melbourne 400, surpassing Supercars legend and Triple Eight teammate Craig Lowndes (169 career podiums) to sit second on the Australian Touring Car Championship / Supercars Championship record book, behind seven-time Supercars Champion and current Team Principal of Triple Eight, Jamie Whincup (237 podiums).
Over his tenure at Triple Eight, SVG has helped the team achieve four Teams’ Championships (2016, 2018, 2021, 2022). He also won the Adelaide 500 in 2017 and 2018, and the Supercars Enduro Cup alongside Alex Premat in 2016. Beyond his illustrious Supercars Championship career, SVG is also a Bathurst 12 Hour and New Zealand Grand Prix winner.
Team Principal Jamie Whincup shares this enthusiasm, saying he’s thrilled at van Gisbergen’s re-signing.
“It’s always great news when you have the best driver in the country deciding to put his faith in the team at Triple Eight Race Engineering to give him a fast, reliable race car to showcase his skills.
“It’s a huge honour that Shane has chosen us to continue that relationship,” Whincup said. “We will of course continue to invest in him, his support crew, engineering and mechanics, to give him the best equipment to remain competitive in the sport.
“We as a team need the best drivers in the country to showcase our skills. At the end of the day, we’re an engineering company and we pride ourselves on building the best race cars and componentry and representing ourselves in the highest regard. One of those factors is that we need someone to get behind the wheel and showcase the work we do and represent the brand and our partners in the highest possible light, and we believe Shane is the best person for that.
“We pride ourselves at Triple Eight to keep making gains and keep improving as a team – we certainly aren’t box-tickers. As a group, we’ve all been working flat out behind the scenes to ensure that we keep the trajectory that we’ve built over the past 15 years, and in some regard Shane’s extension endorses that work – if the best driver in the country wants to continue in this place, then it shows that we’re doing a good job.
“The highest priority for me is having drivers that put everything on the line and showcase their extreme skill. Everyone that buys a ticket to a Supercars event or watches it on television wants to see drivers who put their bodies on the line and take risks to do extraordinary things, and that’s exactly what SVG does. You always have to respect the athletes in the arena, or on the field, or on the track – the ones out there giving their all. The day you don’t respect that is the day that you don’t respect sport. That’s what we respect him for – giving his absolute all, week in and week out.”
SVG’s contract extension will see him continue partnering with Red Bull Ampol Racing teammate, Broc Feeney who pilots the #88 Chevrolet Camaro. Both bulls will hit the track for the upcoming Perth SuperSprint from 28-30 April.
Words and Images: Red Bull Racing
Additional Reporting: Matthew Sampson
Excellent. Thanks