NORTH WILKESBORO, N.C. — Once viewed as a long shot to make The Chase after a crash on Naval Base Coronado, Shane van Gisbergen remains entrenched above the cutline
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He now has a 54-point lead over Erik Jones, the first driver below the cutline, after scoring a fifth-place finish at North Wilkesboro Speedway. He did so in a race in which he only fell out of the top 10 during his final green flag pit stop.
"Playoffs, that's our goal, and we just got to keep executing, having good nights," van Gisbergen said on pit road after completing 450 laps at the historic short track. "And yeah, nights like this set us up. So, just got to keep mistake-free and accumulate as much as we can."
The New Zealand native benefited early from the weather. Rain washed out qualifying, so NASCAR set the starting lineup by the qualifying metric. This meant that van Gisbergen would line up eighth after ending last weekend's trip to Atlanta Motor Speedway with a sixth-place finish.
Once he had the track position, he maintained and put himself in position to accumulate points.
From the drop of the green flag, Shane van Gisbergen raced inside the top 10. He scored 15 stage points, nearly won stage 1, and he scored a fifth-place finish.
Sure, he dealt with some cramping, but he's just accumulating points and finishes that he needs. pic.twitter.com/ViuOurx96j— John Newby (@JohnNewby_) July 20, 2026
Van Gisbergen steadily worked his way to the front of the pack during the opening stage. He used a two-tire stop to gain track position after the caution flew for an incident involving John Hunter Nemechek and Zane Smith. He then took the lead from noted short track master Denny Hamlin after the restart.
He led 28 laps and nearly scored his first oval stage win, but barely lost the lead to Ty Gibbs coming to the checkered flag. He still locked up nine crucial points.
The second stage featured more of the same consistency. Van Gisbergen continued to race inside of the top five despite fading on the longer runs. He led 20 more laps while battling eventual race-winner Joey Logano, and he consistently used the bottom of the track to maintain his position.
"I'm leading, what the f*** do I do now?!?" 🤣
SVG after realizing he took the lead at @NWBSpeedway 😅 pic.twitter.com/dCx2uetho8
— TNT Sports U.S. (@TNTSportsUS) July 20, 2026
Van Gisbergen had the ability to just put his left-side tires on the white line and roll the corners. Other drivers had to use the high line or enter low before sliding up toward the wall.
This technique helped him keep his track position to the stage break and add six more stage points.
"The truck worked for me, so maybe it's a technique thing," said van Gisbergen, who finished third in Saturday's Truck Series race. "But I couldn't get into the corners with any arc. I'd shear the rear, and took us 'til the third stage to be able to do that.
"But I found that the bottom worked for me anyway. Even when we got the car better, I could still wrap really nicely. And if I was patient, it would look after the rear tires too. So I don't know. Seemed to be unique, but it worked."
Van Gisbergen continued to make the moves he needed as darkness descended upon North Wilkesboro Speedway and the temperatures dipped. Prior to making his final pit stop under green flag conditions, he had an average running position of 4.5.
Shane van Gisbergen led 49 laps at North Wilkesboro, his most ever on an oval.
He ran 355 laps in the top 5, his previous best was 110 at Sonoma in 2025.
He also ran 442 laps in the top 10, his previous best was 328 at Charlotte earlier this year. https://t.co/ZYvtTR8z0g
— NASCAR Insights (@NASCARInsights) July 20, 2026
Once he made his final pit stop, he worked his way back up into the top five. He battled Bubba Wallace and Ty Gibbs, which featured the three drivers taking different lines around the track. They all kept their cars clean and crossed the line on the lead lap, something that 31 other drivers couldn't say.
Now, the attention turns to the five remaining races in the regular season. Van Gisbergen has a 54-point lead over the cutline, but that doesn't mean he is safe. He still has to make it through Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Iowa Speedway, Richmond Raceway, New Hampshire Motor Speedway, and Daytona International Speedway.
This will not be a simple task, but he will be in a better position moving forward. He will remain in Group 2 of practice, and he will go out much later in qualifying. This will only set him up for more opportunities to score stage points and bolster his cushion.
"I mean, it just accumulates," van Gisbergen said. "You know, the later you can go in the groups, the later you can go in qualifying. It really helps you.
"So it's a real momentum-based sport, and if you've got it, you just kind of got to keep trickling away and accumulating, I like to say."
