Trackhouse Racing made two splash signings in the past week, inking Shane van Gisbergen to a developmental deal and Zane Smith to a NASCAR Cup Series deal.
The signings set the future up quite well for the race team, which already consists of Ross Chastain and Daniel Suárez. Denny Hamlin, the Joe Gibbs Racing star and co-owner of 23XI Racing, was impressed by the coup, and discussed what the moves mean for Trackhouse Racing on the latest episode of his “Actions Detrimental” podcast.
“This is a great sign for Trackhouse,” Hamlin said. “… Zane is certainly deserving of this opportunity. Every time he’s had the opportunity to compete in Cup, he’s done a great job. Got great results. This is great forward thinking by Trackhouse and Justin [Marks] for his team to look towards the future.”
Smith, 24, will race full-time in the Cup Series in 2024 for Spire Motorsports, as part of an alliance between the two teams. He is in the middle of his fourth full-time season in the Craftsman Truck Series, in which he won the championship in 2022.
Trackhouse Racing adds Zane Smith, Shane van Gisbergen to race team
van Gisbergen, meanwhile, put himself in contention for a Cup Series ride after racing his way to victory in his debut behind the wheel of the No. 91 Chevy for Trackhouse Racing in the Grant Park 220 Chicago Street Race on July 2. He then picked up a P10 result in the Verizon 200 at the Brickyard Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course on Aug. 13. van Gisbergen, 34, will run “in select races in NASCAR’s Cup, Xfinity and Craftsman Truck Series plus some late model and other races” in 2024.
Hamlin called the signing of van Gisbergen an “experiment,” but added he’s excited to see his progression on ovals.
“I don’t think there’s any secret that the SVG thing is more of an experiment than anything,” Hamlin said. “I really look forward to SVG running in multiple series next year… Think he’s a great dude and tremendous talent, obviously. But that experiment could take some time. Would he be ready to run Cup full-time in ovals in a year? No way. Just no way. I mean, these guys are just too good, but you wanna see him have a steady progression of it. So if Trackhouse can keep him under contract for a few years, maybe you see the progression that you like after a year or two, and then you move him up to Cup if the opportunity presents itself.”