By Evie Mason
Medill Reports

At what could potentially be the last NASCAR street race in Chicago, Shane van Gisbergen swept the weekend — winning both the Xfinity and Grant Park Cup Series races.

Driving the No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet, van Gisbergen won both competitions from the pole position — the first position on the starting grid. This marks the first time any NASCAR driver has won races on the same weekend in the top two divisions from the pole.

Now a two-time winner of the Grant Park 165, he credits his success to his prior experience in street racing.

“It certainly helps,” said van Gisbergen, who won the inaugural NASCAR Chicago Cup Series in 2023. “That’s what I grew up doing, racing in Australia. When I moved there, most of the races were street tracks — half of them at least.” 

Van Gisbergen, 36, also referred to by his initials SVG in racing circles, made his V8 Supercars debut in Australia in 2007 at the age of 17. He captured his first supercar victory in 2013 in Adelaide and has since solidified his reputation as a Supercars legend and a street-racing specialist. 

“I’m a little more comfortable with the walls on both sides of the car, and just being accurate and knowing where to take risks or not,” van Gisbergen said. “It seems to still be my strength here.”

During the Xfinity Loop 110 on July 5, van Gisbergen almost blew his strategy by not taking a pit stop early in the race. 

Nevertheless, van Gisbergen was still able to stay in course for the remainder of the 50-lap race, and he regained the lead with only four laps to go before crossing the finish line in first place.

Trailing in second place behind Michael McDowell into the second stage of the 75-lap Grant Park 165 Cup on July 6, van Gisbergen’s strategy once again proved to work in his favor. Once McDowell began having issues with his throttle with 13 laps to go in Stage 2 and fell behind, and after a little bit more back-and-forth, van Gisbergen secured the first-place spot come Lap 60.

A couple of accidents threw a wrench in van Gisbergen’s game plan — including an eight-car crash ensuing from Carson Hocevar’s collision into the wall on Turn 10, and Cody Ware’s crash into the Turn 6 tire barrier as van Gisbergen was approaching Turn 12. However, that didn’t deter van Gisbergen from relying on his street skills.  

“I came out of the last corner and just saw a heap of smoke straight ahead of Turn 6, and I just held my breath until I crossed the line,,” van Gisbergen said. Americans Ty Gibbs and Tyler Reddick finished in second and third position, respectively.  

Will Brown, the only other driver with extensive experience racing in Australia, said the Chicago street course bears several similarities, and that he and several other drivers have aspired to follow in van Gisbergen’s footsteps into NASCAR stardom.

“A lot of us supercar drivers, after watching Shane in 2023, loved the look of Chicago and the event,” Brown said. “A lot of us wanted to come over and try this event.”

Brown, who was unable to continue following Lap 3 of the Grant Park 165 after colliding into a massive pile-up on Michigan Avenue, explained the advantages that come with experience racing Down Under. 

“It’s very similar to our street courses,” Brown said. “It’s just really like a concrete jungle at the end of the day — you don’t want to make a mistake. We’ve got places like Gold Coast — the Gold Coast 600 (is) a very similar circuit, extremely tight, and also Adelaide. (Chicago) is probably a bit rough in places, so it’s just making sure to limit mistakes.”

While NASCAR works on striking the right deal with both the city of Chicago and the state of Illinois so the action can continue in 2027, the Chicago Street Race will not return in 2026. Wherever van Gisbergen ends up, he said he looks forward to more street racing opportunities.

“It’s one of the most exciting weeks,” van Gisbergen said. “It’s cool — everyone’s in the hotel, and you walk to the track with all the fans and everything. I love street circuit racing. I enjoy this weekend, and if it’s the last one, I hope next year we go somewhere cool as well and make another good street race. But this is a place that is pretty special to me, so it’s cool to always race here.” 

Evie Mason is a graduate journalism student in the sports media specialization at Medill. Find her on X at @eviesmason.