Shane van Gisbergen records best-ever oval finish in Nashville thriller

Savannah Lendich Jonkers • June 1st, 2026 5:08 pm

Shane van Gisbergen | Photo: Photosport

Kiwi NASCAR racer Shane van Gisbergen recorded his best-ever oval finish of fifth at Nashville Superspeedway on Monday (NZ Time).

Van Gisbergen climbed two places in the NASCAR Cup Series standings to sit 12th, following the 300-lap race.

In a tight finish, van Gisbergen edged 23XI Racing’s Tyler Reddick by 0.001s and Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott by 0.005s at the line to bank 32 points.

However it was 45-year-old Denny Hamlin who took the checkered flag, followed by Christopher Bell in second. Chase Briscoe and Ricky Stenhouse Jr finished third and fourth respectively.

Trackhouse Racing's van Gisbergen was originally awarded seventh place, however NASCAR officials reviewed footage to find SVG crossed the line before Elliott and Reddick.

Despite cleaning up on the road courses, van Gisbergen's previous best oval finish was 6th, achieved at EchoPark Speedway in February.

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Shane van Gisbergen records best-ever oval finish in Nashville thriller

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