OLD DOG, NEW TRICKS; SVG BECOMES THE WINNINGEST CUP ROOKIE AT 36

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. – Shane Van Gisbergen scored his fourth-consecutive road course win at Watkins Glen International, becoming the winningest Cup Series rookie in NASCAR history.  

Van Gisbergen, the 36-year-old, redeemed a last-lap error that cost him a victory in this event in 2024 to tie Denny Hamlin for the series lead in wins at four. The Auckland, New Zealand native is the third driver to earn five Cup trophies after making their debut at the age of 34 or older.

“Good to get that one back,” Van Gisbergen said regarding the 2024 loss in which he clipped the Bus Stop wall. “I definitely gave that Bus Stop wall another meter on that last lap.”

The Trackhouse Racing driver led his two teammates to a triple top-10 for the first time as an organization. Since 2023, Van Gisbergen has developed into NASCAR’s top foreign-born talent.

“I’ve changed my life to [...] do this,” Van Gisbergen said. “To come and make true of what everyone believed in me and to execute myself and get everything right, it’s why I go racing.”

Van Gisbergen is the first to win four-in-a-row on the road since Chase Elliott, trailing only Jeff Gordon’s streak of six-straight. “To get another win, it’s pretty darned cool,” Van Gisbergen said.

Despite building a 11-second lead, Van Gisbergen said the final stint of the race was not easy. Van Gisbergen credited an “amazing restart” in Stage 3 that let him pass before his tires got hot.

JGR’s Christopher Bell and 2024 Watkins Glen winner Chris Buescher completed the podium. Buescher, who entered 16th on the Playoff grid, earned the second most points and a stage win.

“We went for those stage points there,” Buescher said after scoring 44 points. “It still put us in a good spot to be in contention here and really still be fighting for a win, just not close enough.”

Polesitter Ryan Blaney jumped past Tyler Reddick for sixth in the standings after earning 45 points and a Stage victory. This marks Blaney’s first four-straight top-10 results of the season. 

With two races remaining in the regular season, William Byron built a 42-point to Chase Elliott lead after Iowa. Elliott finished 26th at The Glen, breaking a streak of 23-straight top-20 finishes.

Buscher trails Alex Bowman by 26 points for the final two spots on the Playoff bubble. Ryan Preece sits 34 back from Buescher, his RFK teammate, for a position in the 2025 Playoffs.

The ¾-mile short track of Richmond Raceway hosts race No. 25 of the 36-race Cup season. Coverage for 300 laps of night racing begins Sunday at 7:30 p.m. ET on the USA Network.