Shane Van Gisbergen Snags Fifth Win of 2025 at Charlotte ROVAL

Casey Calhoun, Racing America

There was no shortage of drama in the final moments of Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series event at the Charlotte ROVAL, at least when it came to determining the field for the semi-final round of the NASCAR Playoffs. As far as the race-winner was concerned, things were straightforward.

Shane Van Gisbergen put his No. 88 WeatherTech Chevrolet in Victory Lane for the fifth time this season with a dominant performance in Sunday’s Bank of America ROVAL 400, beating his closest competitors, Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell, by a whopping 15-second margin.

The Auckland, New Zealand-native was the class of the field all afternoon long in the 109-lap contest, leading a race-high 57 laps, but at times during the final stage struggled to hold both Larson and Bell behind him.

However, when the tire wear kicked in – and trust me, it kicked in big time – Van Gisbergen was able to separate himself from the pack, being the quickest car on the racetrack by a significant margin, at times more than one second, and launching himself away from the pack.

RACE RESULTS: 2025 NCS Bank of America ROVAL 400 at Charlotte ROVAL

During the race’s final stage, Larson and Bell felt that the only way to beat Van Gisbergen straight up at the 2.28-mile road course was to make an extra pit stop, and hope that a caution fell in the late stages of the event, so that they could have fresher tires for a sprint to the finish.

That caution didn’t end up coming, and despite concerns of a right-rear tire going down, Van Gisbergen continued to drive away until the checkered flag was displayed with the Trackhouse Racing driver as the winner.

“Yeah, just started getting hot and sliding around, but what an awesome race, Kyle and Christopher driving really good and got a little rough, but man, the battle was awesome,” Van Gisbergen said post-race. “The WeatherTech Chevy, I lost it a little bit at the start of stage three, and whatever they did for the rest of the race, unbelievable. Really enjoyed that, and that was a long time waiting to hope the yellow wasn't going to come out.”

Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell stepped it up on Sunday at the Charlotte ROVAL, but were still unable to better Shane Van Gisbergen, finishing second and third on the afternoon. Both drivers safely advanced to the Round of 8.

Chris Buescher, Michael McDowell, Ryan Preece, and Daniel Suarez finished fourth through seventh, all putting down some pretty solid runs despite not being in contention for the NASCAR Cup Series championship this season.

Chase Elliott was the third-best post-season driver in eighth, with AJ Allmendinger crossing the start-finish line backwards in ninth. Polesitter Tyler Reddick completed the top-10, after fading back from the lead after the race’s first run.

William Byron (11th), Ryan Blaney (13th), Chase Briscoe (14th), Joey Logano (20th), and Denny Hamlin (23rd) all failed to earn top-10 results in Sunday’s event but did advance into the semi-final round of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.

Meanwhile, Tyler Reddick (10th), Bubba Wallace (15th), Ross Chastain (21st), and Austin Cindric (37th) were all eliminated from post-season contention. The main point of contention for a spot in the next round was between Chastain and Logano, with Chastain starting the final lap one point ahead of Logano. However, after being passed by Hamlin, the Trackhouse Racing driver made a final-corner lunge to try and get the position back, and instead, wrecked both drivers.

The NASCAR Cup Series ‘Round of 8’ will begin next weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with coverage of the event happening on Sunday, October 12, at 5:30 PM ET on USA Network, Motor Racing Network, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.