It all started in July 2023. Shane van Gisbergen, a driver for Trackhouse Racing’s ‘Project 91’ back then, sent shockwaves in NASCAR. He held off Justin Haley to win the Chicago Street Race by 1.259 seconds. This marked the first time in over half a century that a driver won his debut NASCAR Cup race. Johnny Rutherford last achieved the feat after winning at Daytona in 1963. According to Denny Hamlin, SVG can easily topple one of NASCAR’s core legends, Jeff Gordon.

The NASCAR Cup Series visited the Charlotte Roval recently, the elimination race of the Round of 12. And despite Tyler Reddick winning the pole, Shane van Gisbergen stole the storyline yet again. And as the New Zealander dazzles yet again, fans ponder Denny Hamlin’s bold opinion about Jeff Gordon.

A jolt to Jeff Gordon’s pedestal

Since 1993, a legendary story has unfolded in NASCAR. Jeff Gordon debuted in the Cup Series that year. At just 21, he secured 7 top-5 finishes, including a runner-up finish in the Coca-Cola 600. Gordon went on to fetch 93 Cup Series race trophies and four championships. Gordon was also unbeatable on road courses – between August 1997 and June 2000, Gordon fetched six consecutive wins on these tracks. However, Gordon’s record is slowly losing its luster with Shane van Gisbergen’s rise. And Denny Hamlin strongly believes that.

Journalist Jordan Bianchi, while praising SVG’s 5 consecutive win streak, declared that the Kiwi can never match up to Jeff Gordon’s level. And Denny Hamlin had a strong reaction to that episode of ‘The Teardown.’ “Jordan Bianchi is absolutely out of his mind,” Hamlin said on Actions Detrimental. “Yeah, he’s on the short-list for the best NASCAR road racer ever. What is he talking about? Does he really think that Jeff Gordon, in his prime, would beat SVG today in a NextGen car? Not a chance. Not a remote chance.”

Denny Hamlin talked about the immense guidance that Jeff Gordon received. Driving the No. 24 Chevrolet Lumina for Hendrick Motorsports, one of the best Cup Series teams ever, and being guided by the legendary Ray Evernham helped Gordon a lot. Hamlin continued, “Jeff Gordon was not winning by this margin. Gordon was not racing cars this equal to everyone else. Jeff Gordon was in a Hendrick Motorsports car that was Ray Evernhammed up. That is not even a remote comparison.” 

On the other hand, Shane van Gisbergen had already achieved Jeff Gordon’s legendary status in a different series – Supercars. He owns three championships and 80 wins there due to his unique left-foot braking technique. So Hamlin continued, “When it comes to turning left and right, they are not close, and SVG is the greatest road course NASCAR driver in history, and he’s only been doing it for a year and a half. It’s undisputed. Anybody that disputes it, even in my mentions, shut up! I know, you don’t. I compete, you don’t.”

SVG is clearly reigning supreme in the Joe Gibbs Racing veteran’s mind. And even the NASCAR fanbase is on Denny Hamlin’s side for a change.

NASCAR fans acknowledge the GOAT Kiwi

When Shane van Gisbergen ventured into NASCAR, he had a mammoth task of gaining the approval of his peers and fans. Less than three years into the game, and SVG is already off the charts. So, fans heavily agreed with Denny Hamlin about SVG surpassing Jeff Gordon’s legacy. Somebody gave a comprehensive explanation: “Yep. He’s the 4th winningest driver in Supercars history with 80 wins and 3 championships. And, just in case you think he did all of that ages ago, 40 of those wins and 2 of those championships came in his last 3 seasons in Supercars. Dude is like the Jeff Gordon of Supercars and switched over while he’s still in his prime.”

Presently, only one driver seems to have broken Shane van Gisbergen’s road course stronghold. In response to losing the 2025 Xfinity race in Chicago, Connor Zilisch beat SVG the following weekend in Sonoma. The 19-year-old wonder kid is already 10 wins into the 2025 Xfinity Series title run – and that too as a rookie! So one fan wrote, “I think only driver who can legitimately challenge SVG on a road course is currently racing in the xfinity series.” What is more, Connor Zilisch is heading to the Cup Series next season as SVG’s teammate. So one fan cannot wait to see the brilliant teamwork: “There are a lot of current cup drivers who are great on road courses and can’t touch SVG. We will see Zilisch come back to the field a lot next year.”

Besides Jeff Gordon’s 6-win road course streak, many other Cup Series legends have good records. Juan Pablo Montoya had two wins, four top fives, and 9 top tens on road courses. Tony Stewart owns 8 trophies on the same tracks. Nevertheless, one fan believes that SVG would have still beaten these stars:

“Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Juan Montoya, and Marcose Ambrose would definitely challenge him and occasionally beat him, but I do think he’s the most dominating road course driver the sport has had in at least 30 years.” Another fan unequivocally agreed with Hamlin’s praise. They saluted the Kiwi driver: “SVG in the Gen 7 car is the most dominant car and driver combination on road courses in NASCAR history. No one will beat him in this car for a while.”

Evidently, Shane van Gisbergen is garnering tons of praise from both the garage and the community. We can only imagine what the Trackhouse star can achieve next!