Supercars: van Gisbergen not following McLaughlin to America

Supercars great Shane van Gisbergen has ended speculation about his future after signing a multi-year contract extension with Red Bull Ampol Racing.

Van Gisbergen has been a powerhouse during his Supercars career and is a three-time Champion, and two-time Bathurst 1000 winner.

The Kiwi star has accumulated 77 wins from 489 races, with 46 pole positions, and sits second on the Australian Touring Car Championship/Supercars Championship record book for the most career podiums with 170.

Van Gisbergen began his career at Oran Park in 2007 as an 18-year and joined Triple Eight Race Engineering at the start of the 2016 season, the same year he won his first Drivers’ Championship.

The Red Bull Ampol Racing star said it was an easy decision to extend his contract.

“Extending with Red Bull Ampol Racing was a no-brainer for me. It’s certainly exciting to continue with the best team in pit lane and I’m stoked to be able to stay,” van Gisbergen said in a statement.

“I’ve never been happier at this team. The coolest moment for me, and one that really solidified my decision was the team repairing my car after I had that shunt at the Australian Grand Prix (Melbourne 400) – everyone stuck in to help each other to get #97 fixed.

“Even though we missed the next practice session, to come out and put the car on pole in qualifying was amazing.

“Seeing how much that meant to everyone was a special moment, and to then win that race was unreal.

“It’s such a fantastic team environment at the moment, and we have a great crew that I love working with.”