SHANE van Gisbergen will line up from 13th for the NASCAR Cup Series race at the Circuit of the Americas.
By virtue of placing within the top 16 of the point standings following Daytona and Atlanta, van Gisbergen was placed in the preferred second group for qualifying.
Earlier in free practice, the #97 SafetyCulture machine registered the 20th-fastest time.
Pole for the race went to Tyler Reddick, who has won the opening two races of the season at Daytona and Atlanta. He will share the front row with SVG’s Trackhouse Racing teammate Ross Chastain.
To date, the Kiwi has two previous career Cup starts at COTA.
In 2024, driving for Kaulig Racing, the three-time Supercars champion finished 20th from 12th at the start, while last year in his first full season on the tour for Trackhouse Racing, he started and finished in sixth – the last time he was beaten on a road course in the sport’s top tier.
Next up for van Gisbergen is the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race at COTA, where the identical liveried #9 SafetyCulture Chevrolet will line up from second.
In three races last year pulling double duty for JR Motorsports in the second-tier series, he finished first in Chicago, second at Sonoma, and in the wall at Watkins Glen off the bumper of teammate Connor Zilisch, who starts from pole today.
The 65-lap race is scheduled to drop the green flag at 7am AEDT.
“Control Freak”: Mark Skaife’s 2000 Holden Commodore TV commercial
Holden Racing Team ace Mark Skaife features in this 2000 Holden TV commercial made for the Australian market focused on the rear-wheel-drive Holden Commodore.