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Shane van Gisbergen paid tribute to the Holden ‘family’ who helped with his controversial change from Ford eight years ago, following a historic victory at Bathurst.
Kiwi’s first victory in the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 came in the last official Supercars race for Holden, following General Motors’ decision to close the brand.
Triple Eight and other squads of Supercars will continue to campaign for Commodores next year without support from the factory, before the Chevrolet Camaro joins the grid under new Gen3 rules in 2022.
The son of a Ford fanatic, van Gisbergen raced for the Falcons for the first six years of his Supercar career at Stone Brothers Racing.
In the midst of transitioning from SBR to Mercedes and Erebus for 2013, van Gisbergen controversially defected to the Holden Tekno Autosports team before progressing to Triple Eight three years later.
That has meant racing under the banner of the Holden Racing Team for the past four years, crowned by victory today alongside Holden’s staunch co-driver Garth Tander.
After stopping Cameron Waters’ Ford Mustang, van Gisbergen drove a victory lap with a Holden flag flying out the window of Commodore # 97, symbolizing a significant moment for the sport.
“I was thinking I’d pick up the checkered flag and saw the guy there [with a Holden flag] and I thought about stopping and grabbing him, ”van Gisbergen explained.
“It is very meaningful for Holden to say goodbye to them in this way as a factory team, as an official racing team.
“I had some trouble joining Holden, I just remember Simon [McNamara, then sponsorship manager] and Gerald [McDornan, PR manager] And the team, all the Holden guys, how welcoming they were.
“They really felt like family, you really felt like a Holden driver, it’s been great to be a part of that.
“Then becoming the factory team two or three years ago, having that weight on my shoulders and representing them like that is quite special.
“Winning last for Holden is great. I think it would have looked good with the flag on top, I wish it was a good way to say goodbye. “
The victory lap was a new addition to this year’s race, typically having drivers turn directly towards the rear of the paddock after exiting Turn 1 after the completion of the race.
The lack of spectators at this year’s event thanks to COVID-19 restrictions made that, and the podium that followed, an unusual experience for the 31-year-old.
“It was strange without people. Obviously, I’ve experienced being on the podium a couple of times with seconds and thirds and stuff, “he said.
“It’s still a special feeling, it still means as much as every two years I think. The intensity of the race was insane, the build-up, how fast they all went … it still means a lot.
“Hopefully next year there will be a lot of people again and we can enjoy it again, but it doesn’t take anything away from it.
“It would have been great to have that victory lap with the whole crowd there and stuff, it was kind of lonely.
“I was going to stop up there, I was planning a skid, but there were a lot of cops up there …
“It’s cool, I’m over the moon with it. It’s great to get one. “
Van Gisbergen was joined on the victory lap by Scott McLaughlin, who celebrated winning the 2020 Supercar Championship title.
