Shane van Gisbergen is pitted against Ryan Preece for the In-Season Challenge’s first round at Sonoma Raceway. SVG reflected on the match-up and hoped for a ‘tough but fair battle’.
The In-Season Challenge is a bracket-style tournament featuring 32 drivers competing for a million-dollar payday over five races. The champions round culminates at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and crowns the prevailing driver.
In its second edition, 17th-ranking van Gisbergen goes against 16th-ranking Ryan Preece. In a press conference on Friday, the Trackhouse driver opened up on his opponent, saying (via X/Steven Taranto),
“I see he’s been getting pretty lippy online, so that’s a bit of fun. We were giving each other shit the other day from Pocono when he was throwing signs at me and stuff. But he’s a good dude. We had a little tussle last week, he kind of pulled a shitty move on me and half-spun me so I got him back.”
“But yeah, I look forward to it. It’s cool that there’s something else to focus on, and he’s been going really well on his road courses this year. I’m sure I’ll see him on Sunday, and it’ll be a tough but fair battle,” he added.
With Sonoma being a road course, the odds are in Shane van Gisbergen’s favor, while Ryan Preece is yet to finish top-10 at the Californian track. They had a few run-ins at Pocono and San Diego recently.
Nonetheless, the New Zealander is already off to a stellar start with his third consecutive O’Reilly pole at Sonoma. SVG is also the reigning winner at the track, but he faces stiff competition from road course ringers Michael McDowell, Tyler Reddick, and teammate Connor Zilisch.
Zilisch is yet to score a top-10 in his rookie Cup season. The 19-year-old’s best result so far is a 14th at Circuit of The Americas.
Shane van Gisbergen reflects on his Chase situation
Shane van Gisbergen is coming off a disastrous weekend at Naval Base Coronado. The 37-year-old was collected in a multi-car wreck triggered by Austin Hill.
Consequently, van Gisbergen dropped three places in the standings, leaving him one spot below the Chase cutline. He hopes to bounce back this weekend.
“We really need a good weekend. That hurt us on that cutline. Need to get some momentum going again and hopefully this weekend starts it and puts us in a good position for the last few races,” SVG said via NASCAR’s official website.
All eyes are on Shane van Gisbergen at Sonoma. The No.97 driver has finished outside the top 30 in three consecutive races. He last won at Watkins Glen International with a 74-lap lead.
The Toyota / Save Mart 350 is scheduled for Sunday, June 28, at 3:30 PM ET. Fans can watch the 110-lapper on TNT Sports.
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