Shane van Gisbergen has proven to be an exceptional driver in road races and has recently achieved five consecutive victories in the NASCAR Cup Series calendar. However, he still has one challenge to face: conquering the Circuit of the Americas (COTA).
After an impressive debut in 2023 at the Chicago Street Course, where he won in his first race, SVG has stood out in his NASCAR journey. Now, with his participation in Trackhouse Racing, he has accumulated victories at tracks like Mexico, Sonoma, and Watkins Glen, leading a total of 278 laps across five races, which represents 57% of race time.
Analysis of His Performance at COTA
In his second attempt at COTA with Trackhouse, he finished in 20th position in 2024, an experience that did not repeat the following year when he started sixth, led 23 laps, but ended up in the same position he started in. Additionally, he was disqualified in the NASCAR O’Reilly Series race at COTA, where he led 20 laps but a dispute with Austin Hill caused him to fall back to 27th position after violating track limits.
For 2026, SVG has the chance to continue his historic streak, competing in both NASCAR O’Reilly and NASCAR Cup at COTA. Recently, he achieved his best result in ovals with a sixth place in Atlanta, boosting his confidence going into race weekend at COTA.
Competition at COTA
With the modification of the COTA layout to a shorter version, competition looks intense. Drivers like Tyler Reddick, who has an average finish of 4.6 and is a recent winner of the Daytona 500, pose serious rivals for SVG. On the other hand, defending champion Christopher Bell is looking to bounce back after a rough start to the season, despite being the only driver with three podiums at COTA.
Finally, Connor Zilisch, SVG’s teammate, will also be a name to watch. After a good performance in the O’Reilly Series, expectations are high to see how it translates to NASCAR Cup, although he still needs to overcome a significant learning curve.
