Shane van Gisbergen will defend his Chicago Street Race crown this Sunday behind the wheel of a saucy ride. That’s right, van Gisbergen is bringing sauce to the streets of downtown Chicago.
Kaulig Racing announced Tuesday that van Gisbergen’s No. 16 Chevrolet will be sponsored by Wendy’s and their new “Saucy Nuggs.”
Now imagine van Gisbergen and “Saucy Nuggs” in Victory Lane in downtown Chicago. What an epic visual that would be, and one that van Gisbergen himself is certainly hoping will take place.
The New Zealand native won last year’s race, which just so happened to be his NASCAR Cup Series debut. His victory made him a hot commodity around the sport, and he eventually signed a developmental deal with Trackhouse Racing.
“The fans in Australia and New Zealand, the response this week and the coverage has been — I can’t explain it,” he said after winning at Chicago. “Like the response and the support I’ve got from everyone and even over here how welcoming everyone is, I can’t believe it. Dream come true.”
Shane van Gisbergen prepping for Chicago Street Course defense
van Gisbergen has been competing full-time in the Xfinity Series this season. Through 17 starts, he sits 13th in the points standings with four top 10s and two top 5s. He secured back-to-back checkered flags at Portland and Sonoma. van Gisbergen has competed in three Cup Series races this season, his best finish of 20th coming at COTA.
“[I’ve learned] a huge amount of things, like just how funky the Xfinity car is to drive,” he recently said, via Alanis King of ESPN. “The biggest thing is that the Cup car, it feels like a race car. It feels like every other car I’ve driven around the world, with the aero and the rear end. It’s a huge evolution of a NASCAR, I guess, to go the whole different route that they have. Even on the oval, it kind of feels like a normal car.
“Whereas the Xfinity car, it’s only specific to oval racing, basically. The style of car that has been designed and developed for years, that NASCAR type of stock car. The rear end is really, really interesting, how it moves around. I’ve never driven a car like that.”
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