V8 superstar Shane van Gisbergen has won the supercars title today, while standing on the sidelines.
Van Gisbergen locked up his first drivers’ championship since his breakthrough title in 2016, after race 30 of the 2021 campaign was called off due to bad weather.
The race was originally delayed, with drivers completing five laps before being taken off again. As conditions worsened throughout the afternoon, it was declared a no-contest which meant that van Gisbergen’s massive lead at the top of the standings could no longer be mathematically pegged back.
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He takes a 349-point lead over Red Bull teammate Jamie Whincup into the season-ending Bathurst 1000.
The 32-year-old became the 14th driver in history to win two or more titles – Whincup has the record with seven ahead of the trio of Ian Geoghegan, Dick Johnson and Mark Skaife, who have five each.
While he wasn’t presented with that trophy yet, he was awarded $25,000 and the Sydney Cup for his dominance of that portion of the schedule as well.
“It sucks we couldn’t put on a show, but it’s been an awesome time,” he said on the broadcast afterwards.
“It’s super cool to win another championship. I’m over the moon.
“I can’t thank the team enough, it’s been an awesome season, and our cars have been really strong almost everywhere.”
Bathurst 1000 will run over six days at Mount Panorama, starting on Tuesday November 30 and concluding on Sunday December 5.