Shane van Gisbergen keeps it real on his ‘scary’ journey to Mexico

Shane Van Gisbergen recounted his 'scary' journey to Mexico that saw his plane 'launch itself' before take-off. The trip was ultimately aborted for safety reasons, while the Australian native ended up taking an early morning flight to be on time for Friday's practice sessions.

Most drivers were scheduled to arrive in Mexico City on Thursday, June 12, but mechanical issues forced flight delays that left many teams stranded at Charlotte, North Carolina. Reports emerged of a loud noise upon take-off on one aircraft, while another encountered engine troubles.

In an interview ahead of Friday's practice at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez circuit, Van Gisbergen recalled the tense journey to Mexico.

"Yeah, it wasn't fun. Yesterday was a long day. But yeah, pretty scary when the plane launched itself on take-off. But yeah, they stopped and were just trying to get another plane. And then it was first thing this morning, so early start this morning. I think we got up at 3:30 am at home and got an early flight down here," he said via Speedwaydigest.

Shane Van Gisbergen, a former Australian Supercars champion known for his road course prowess, played to his strengths during Friday's practice sessions. He consistently ran inside the top-10 and finished as such in both outings.

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Shane Van Gisbergen looks forward to a stretch of upcoming road courses

In his first full-time season, Shane Van Gisbergen has scored just a single top-10 result across 15 starts. His sixth place finish at The Circuit of The Americas, a road course, appears in stark contrast to his struggles on the ovals. As a respite to his shortcomings, the Cup Series calendar is filled with road courses in the upcoming weeks, beginning with the Viva Mexico 250.

Reflecting upon the same, Van Gisbergen spoke about his preparation for Sunday's race.

"Unfortunately, I missed the track walk this morning, so the first look will be on the drive around. But yeah, it looks great. Should be some good racing. Nice to have a little break from the ovals for me, even though we’ve been getting a lot better the last few weeks. We’ve got a good run of road courses coming up. Time for us to start getting some good results," he said via Speedway Digest.

Shane Van Gisbergen recently saw a glimmer of hope when he qualified on pole for the All-Star Open race at North Wilkesboro Speedway. He led 54 laps in the event but failed to break into the top-10. His last race at Michigan International Speedway saw him finish 18th in a 36-car field. Driving the #88 Chevy, the Trackhouse Racing driver is currently ranked 33rd in the Driver's championship with 192 points and an average finish of 25.

Fans can watch Sunday's(June 15) race on Prime Video at 3 PM ET.