Shane van Gisbergen reaffirmed his status as one of, if not the best road course drivers in NASCAR Cup Series history following a dominant win in the Toyota Save Mart 350.
On Sunday, Van Gisbergen coasted down victory lane at Sonoma Raceway moments after securing his third win of the season — thereby matching Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin and Christopher Bell for the most victories in 2025. Perhaps even more impressive, he became the first driver since Jeff Gordon in 1998 and 1999 to win three-straight road course races from the pole.
In recent weeks, Van Gisbergen has completely dominated the competition on street circuits, securing impressive victories at the Grant Park 165 and Viva Mexico 250. On Saturday, he snagged pole at Sonoma Raceway — though Larson expressed confidence that he’d be able to put a stop to the No. 88 Chevrolet driver’s win streak.
One day prior, Van Gisbergen got into a tightly contested battle with Connor Zilisch during the late stages of the Xfinity Series Pit Boss/FoodMaxx 250. In the latest clash between the budding rivals, the 18-year-old phenom emerged victorious to give Dale Earnhardt Jr. his first-ever win at Sonoma.
As most of the field flipped Stage 1 during the Toyota Save Mart 350, Ross Chastain chose to stay out and secure his first stage victory of the 2025 campaign. Bubba Wallace — who’s recently faced mounting pressure from 23XI — additionally opted to run it out, earning eight playoff points with a P3 finish before securing seven more points the following stage.
Several teammates got caught up in on-track dustups during the first half of the race, as Christopher Bell locked up his tires and collided with fellow Joe Gibbs Racing driver Chase Briscoe in Stage 1. “Dang it, I ended up in the marbles,” he conceded over the radio.
Then on Lap 45, Chastain got loose entering turn 11 and tagged the rear of Daniel Suarez, who did little to hide his frustration with his Trackhouse Racing teammate. “You better hope I don’t get to him today,” he boldly warned.
Van Gisbergen once again displayed his incredible pace moments later after pitting with two laps to go in Stage 2, only to return to the track and secure the stage victory by passing Larson, who stayed out until the break in hopes of securing points.
Tensions boiled over off the track as crew members from Ty Gibbs and Brad Keselowski’s teams nearly came to blows. As the No. 54 Toyota driver tightly entered his stall, he clipped the hand of the No. 6 tire carrier Telvin McClurkin.
McClurkin didn’t take kindly to the close call, swiftly making his way towards the Gibbs’ box and giving the team a piece of his mind. Several light pushes ensued, though the conflict didn’t escalate any further.
With 15 laps remaining, Cody Ware’s wheel nut flew off his right rear tire, which rolled down the track and prompted the fourth yellow flag of the race. On the subsequent restart, Noah Gragson got turned and caused a multi-car wreck involving Larson, Josh Berry, Wallace, Erik Jones and Ryan Preece. Another caution was swiftly waved, which didn’t bode well for many of the drivers who opted for fresher tires.