The Chicago race was a rollercoaster ride that took the fandom by storm. The road course was set in stone as Shane Van Gisbergen drove his No. 88 Chevrolet to victory, proving once again that Gisbergen is the ultimate boss when it comes to road courses.

While the race reached its zenith with Gisbergen approaching the white flag, there was something grave happening at the course. Cody Ware found himself buried into the tire barriers at Turn 6 after a brake rotor exploded at the fastest part of the circuit.

The pileup sparked huge controversy as NASCAR finds itself at the hot seat, as questions arise revolving around their competency in officiating decisions during such high-tension scenarios.

Shane Van Gisbergen ends his silence on NASCAR’s caution controversy in Chicago

The pileup at the Chicago raceway, due to a brake rotor explosion, was unprecedented, leaving a shivering silence in the audience. As Shane Van Gisbergen neared victory, Cody Ware hits rock bottom after the No.51 Ford finds itself stuck among the barriers at Turn 6. However, what started the ruckus was NASCAR’s failure to raise the caution flag right after the incident, causing the No.51 car to end up in the pile. NASCAR officials were late to throw in the caution flag, and when they did, it was after Ware dropped his window net with the OK signal, however, showing that he wouldn’t be continuing the race.

It’s been a while since the race, and the champion just gave his verdict on the issue. SVG came on the Rubbin is Racing podcast, and got candid about the whole NASCAR caution controversy. He suggested that NASCAR’s failure to react immediately after such a grave incident is worrying. He also drew out comparisons, suggesting safety measures like G meters be installed in the cars, which help in alerting the officials whenever there is an incident on the track.

The champion humbly suggested that NASCAR should bring better measures into the picture with better management. He went on to say, “Well, I was on the good side of. It is worrying that they didn’t see how hard that car went into the fence, you know, and that there’s no, I’m pretty sure in Australia there’s like G meters in the car and you when a car crashed, you know, the officials would see that it had a huge impact, you know, so you’d be able to do that. So hopefully something like that is implemented, that there’s a trigger that has been a big crash and to throw the yellow straight away, or but I’m sure that they’re looking into that stuff straight away, and that seems to happen here. When something bad happens, there’s an immediate fix, or they certainly look into it and try and start fixing things. So yeah, I really think that end of that race probably could have been managed a little better. In my position. I guess I couldn’t complain at the time, but in hindsight, that was crazy.”

Shane Van Gisbergen’s views on the incident seem quite practical. NASCAR officials surely lacked in management, while failing to assess the situation. It was surely concerning how they failed to react to the situation after Ware took such an alarming hit. With different technologies at its disposal, there could have been many better ways to check if a driver takes a hit.

Shane Van Gisbergen starts on pole at the Xfinity race at Sonoma Raceway

Shane Van Gisbergen and Trackhouse Racing garage are having a great season so far. This year, Shane seems much more resilient and focused on winning as the veteran driver has been bagging one win after another in all the road courses. And it seems like he’s on course for another triumph at a road course.

Lapping the track at 1:15.259s, the Kiwi driver is starting from pole position, giving him a big edge over the others and a strong chance at the W. However, what’s interesting this weekend is that, fresh off giving stiff competition to SVG in Chicago, Connor Zilisch is back at it again, as he starts from the second position in the grid.

Even though he’s got a big advantage from pole position, he did mention one variable that could prove crucial in Sonoma, “I think it’s hotter than last year, so it’s slippery, but the car’s quite different than last year, so just trying to get used to that and how the car reacts.”

Yeah, it is going to be pretty hot out there at the Sonoma Raceway. But, judging by how he’s been blisteringly fast at road courses this season, there’s no better driver on that grid than SVG to figure out the conditions, adapt to them and come out of the other side with that win.