Racing gun's rally revelation after 'epic' debut

Despite an already packed program, Shane van Gisbergen has signalled his tendency to contention the New Zealand Rally Championship successful afloat adjacent year.

The revelation comes aft Rally New Zealand, where the Kiwi claimed a podium successful the 2nd part of the FIA World Rally Championship – WRC2 – connected debut.

The 33-year-old, who besides competes successful Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia Powered by AWS arsenic portion of the SpeedSeries, said helium wants to vie connected location ungraded much often.

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"I emotion what I bash arsenic a occupation successful Supercars and if I tin bash this extracurricular of that, I'd emotion to," van Gisbergen said.

"I emotion the roads present successful New Zealand. I'd similar to bash much present and get a car for the afloat season, that'd beryllium rather cool. If the dates enactment up I'll effort beryllium there."

The two-time Supercars champion has competed successful a fistful of rallies successful Australia and New Zealand since the extremity of 2020.

Shane van Gisbergen flies his Skoda Fabia R5 implicit a leap connected the last signifier of Rally New Zealand. (Aaron Wishart)

It's been a palmy stint to date.

His nationalist debut saw him triumph the classical people successful the Rally of Auckland down the instrumentality of his father's Ford Escort RS1800. 

A time later, helium won the Battle of Jack's Ridge rally sprint successful a top-flight Mitsubishi Mirage AP4 rally car.

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On returning to Australia, helium claimed 2nd successful his Motorsport Australia Rally Championship debut driving a Skoda Fabia R5 down aggregate nationalist champion Harry Bates.

A instrumentality to New Zealand saw him neglect to decorativeness Rally Hawke's Bay, though van Gisbergen had been starring astatine the clip of his dilatory velocity crash.

His archetypal outright triumph came successful the Far North Rally earlier his astir caller occurrence successful WRC2.

Shane van Gisbergen (right) and co-driver Glen Weston observe their WRC2 podium astatine Rally New Zealand. (Aaron Wishart)

For van Gisbergen, the international-level podium was "just a bonus" to what was a bucket database event.

"The full play was beauteous epic," helium said.

"The upwind made it beauteous hard for america each but it was each astir learning and improving. Glen and I got amended passim the play – the notes got amended arsenic well. 

"Such a assemblage retired present and specified a chill signifier connected the [Jack's Ridge] signifier – it's conscionable epic. 

"You tin spot each the fans cheering america connected and speech from the weather, the cars parked down the roadworthy amusement however galore radical turned out."

"This lawsuit needs to support happening present truthful we tin travel back."

Shane van Gisbergen learns rally the hard way

Calendar clashes with Supercars person precluded van Gisbergen from contesting much rallies successful Australia to date.

As yet, a calendar for adjacent year's New Zealand Rally Championship has not been released.

Should van Gisbergen adhd much rally outings to his 2023 program, that would marque for a blockbuster twelvemonth alongside Supercars, GT World Challenge Australia and a imaginable NASCAR Cup Series debut.

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