Years after Shane van Gisbergen’s Chicago triumph, Kiwi driver set to be joined by 5th Supercars driver in NASCAR

Shane van Gisbergen showcased road course prowess from Supercars to the NASCAR stage when he won his Cup debut race on the streets of Chicago two years ago. Now, another fellow Supercars driver will take his chances on wheeling a stock car.

The driver in question is Jack Perkins, a 38-year-old Australian with over 150 Supercars starts. He is set to become the fifth Supercars driver to debut in NASCAR, following in the footsteps of Shane van Gisbergen, Brodie Kostecki, Will Brown, and Cam Waters.

In a press release, Perkins, who will drive the #19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota (Xfinity Series) at Portland International Raceway, expressed excitement over driving in the stock car racing series, which he considers a dream come true.

“This is a long-held dream come true for me, and I am so excited about driving in NASCAR’s Xfinity Series for the legendary Joe Gibbs,” he said.

“I started thinking about competing in NASCAR when I first visited the U.S. in 2008 to watch Marcos Ambrose at Sonoma, and be a spotter for Paul Morris,” he added.

Perkins also offered words of encouragement, saying,

“It’s been a long journey to get here. I’ve come close a few times, but we couldn’t quite get all the ducks lined up. To do it now with Coach Gibbs and JGR proves you should never give up.”

The one-off race was made possible through the recommendation of James Small, Chase Briscoe's crew chief in the NASCAR Cup Series. Jack Perkins and Small are long-time friends who grew up in the racing scene in the Land Down Under.

Perkin's debut at Portland is scheduled for August 30, the penultimate race before the Xfinity playoffs begin. It consists of 75 laps of road course racing around the 1.9-mile track.

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“I think we finally got all the things right”: Shane van Gisbergen on NASCAR All-Star Open pole

Last week, Shane van Gisbergen, who is struggling to score points in his rookie Cup Series season, expressed a sense of relief after securing the pole position for the NASCAR All-Star Open at North Wilkesboro Speedway. While SVG thought his lap was good, he was clueless, considering he hadn't started from the front on an oval track.

The 36-year-old Trackhouse Racing driver said (via NASCAR):

“I think we finally got all the things right. Qualifying has been a weakness. My lap was pretty good, coming in was good [...] I've never started at the front for an oval, so I don't know what to do there. I have to learn the rules and see how we go.”

Unfortunately, despite leading the most laps, Shane van Gisbergen wasn't able to make one of the two transfer spots for the All-Star Race. He finished 13th, with Carson Hocevar and John Hunter Nemechek advancing to the main event.

The pole position at North Wilkesboro was SVG's best qualifying effort this year, though the weekend was non-points-paying. In 12 races, the #88 Chevrolet pilot has only scored one top-10 finish (Circuit of the Americas).