Sandown Supercars: Injured van Gisbergen takes incredible win
Nursing a broken collarbone Shane van Gisbergen drove from 17th on the grid to a remarkable victory in the opening race at Sandown.

The Kiwi made steady progress throughout the race, making up four spots on the opening lap-and-a-half before Bryce Fullwood's trip into the Turn 4 wall prompted an early caution.
When the race went green again on Lap 7 he continued his march forward, making up plenty of positions as cars around him pitted, while also pulling off impressive moves on the likes of Jack Le Brocq and Will Davison.
Van Gisbergen was then the last in the field to make his stop, waiting until there was just 11 laps left. He then had the best tyre condition for a storming run home, quickly clearing the likes of Anton De Pasquale and Mark Winterbottom as he set his sights on the top three.
His big break came with two laps to go, when Chaz Mostert, Cam Waters and Jamie Whincup found themselves in a three-way fight for the lead into Turn 1.
That slowed them up enough for van Gisbergen to not only join the battle but pass both Whincup and Mostert with a spectacular lunge into Turn 4.
He then charged down Waters, who had stopped six laps earlier, across the penultimate lap before grabbing the lead on the final tour to set up a memorable victory.
Before today nobody in ATCC/Supercars history had won a single-driver race at Sandown from lower than 14th on the grid.
"I had so much help the last couple of weeks with good surgeons, the hyperbaric chambers, my nice girlfriend looking after me, and our physio," said van Gisbergen.
"It's been a pretty tough two weeks but I feel awesome in the car. And obviously my car is great. Hopefully that was good to watch, I was trying!"

Shane van Gisbergen, Triple Eight Race Engineering passes Cam Waters, Tickford Ford for the lead
Photo by: Mark Horsburgh, Edge Photographics
It was a see-sawing battle for the lead across the 36-lap journey, with a number of drivers looking in contention for the win at various points.
Waters, who ultimately finished second, led across the first stint after jumping polesitter Mostert at the first corner.
Mostert, however, opted to stop on Lap 8, giving him a huge undercut by the time Waters and Whincup pitted together on Lap 19.
That advantage was swiftly squandered by tyre condition though, Mostert going from leading with two laps to go to finishing down in sixth place.
Whincup, who had challenged Waters for the lead right before van Gisbergen burst into the lead group, finished third ahead of Mark Winterbottom and Anton De Pasquale.
la | # | driver | car | laps | time | gap |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 97 | ![]() | Holden Commodore ZB | 36 | 45'57.0639 | |
2 | 6 | ![]() | Ford Mustang GT | 36 | 45'58.0913 | 1.0274 |
3 | 88 | ![]() | Holden Commodore ZB | 36 | 45'58.3784 | 1.3145 |
4 | 18 | ![]() | Holden Commodore ZB | 36 | 46'00.8033 | 3.7394 |
5 | 11 | ![]() | Ford Mustang GT | 36 | 46'01.7226 | 4.6587 |
6 | 25 | ![]() | Holden Commodore ZB | 36 | 46'01.7386 | 4.6747 |
7 | 8 | ![]() | Holden Commodore ZB | 36 | 46'04.9121 | 7.8482 |
8 | 7 | ![]() | Ford Mustang GT | 36 | 46'06.4832 | 9.4193 |
9 | 44 | ![]() | Ford Mustang GT | 36 | 46'11.3409 | 14.2770 |
10 | 5 | ![]() | Ford Mustang GT | 36 | 46'11.8490 | 14.7851 |
11 | 26 | ![]() | Ford Mustang GT | 36 | 46'12.4101 | 15.3462 |
12 | 20 | ![]() | Holden Commodore ZB | 36 | 46'12.5504 | 15.4865 |
13 | 3 | ![]() | Ford Mustang GT | 36 | 46'13.0551 | 15.9912 |
14 | 14 | ![]() | Holden Commodore ZB | 36 | 46'15.2928 | 18.2289 |
15 | 96 | ![]() | Holden Commodore ZB | 36 | 46'15.5848 | 18.5209 |
16 | 9 | ![]() | Holden Commodore ZB | 36 | 46'19.6233 | 22.5594 |
17 | 99 | ![]() | Holden Commodore ZB | 36 | 46'22.0232 | 24.9593 |
18 | 4 | ![]() | Holden Commodore ZB | 36 | 46'22.0697 | 25.0058 |
19 | 35 | ![]() | Holden Commodore ZB | 36 | 46'26.4641 | 29.4002 |
20 | 22 | ![]() | Holden Commodore ZB | 36 | 46'26.6320 | 29.5681 |
21 | 19 | ![]() | Holden Commodore ZB | 36 | 46'27.1017 | 30.0378 |
22 | 17 | ![]() | Ford Mustang GT | 34 | 46'18.2379 | 2 Laps |
23 | 34 | ![]() | Holden Commodore ZB | 30 | 47'07.4935 | 6 Laps |
24 | 2 | ![]() | Holden Commodore ZB | 29 | 47'03.6718 | 7 Laps |
Related video

Previous article
Sandown Supercars: Mostert beats Waters to pole
Next article
Contenders react to wild Supercars race

About this article
Series | Supercars |
Event | Sandown |
Drivers | Shane van Gisbergen |
Teams | Triple Eight Race Engineering |
Author | Andrew van Leeuwen |
Sandown Supercars: Injured van Gisbergen takes incredible win
Trending
Supershots Sandown
Supershots Bathurst
Sam Brabham drives BT-19 at Mount Panorama
Can DJR still be a Supercars powerhouse after Penske?
Roger Penske's whirlwind Australian Supercars sojourn is over. After six seasons, three drivers' titles, three teams' championships and a Bathurst 1000 crown, The Captain has sold his controlling stake in Dick Johnson Racing back to the squad and walked away from the category.
Can Whincup be Triple Eight's ruthless leader?
Supercars' most successful team of the past 15 years is set for a radical shakeup next year when Jamie Whincup retires from driving and takes over the reins at Triple Eight. But does he have what it takes to be the new Roland Dane?
How a lifetime Supercars deal broke down in one year
David Reynolds inked what was effectively a lifetime deal with Erebus in 2019 – only to walk out a year later. What went wrong?
Why Supercars now needs a new "human salt harvester"
Scott McLaughlin has been a controversial figure in Supercars over the past few years but, as he heads off to a fresh challenge in IndyCar, the Australian tin-top series needs to find someone else to fill his drama-filled boots as the category enters a new era...
Why 2020 isn't McLaughlin's greatest title
Scott McLaughlin was quick to describe his third Supercars title as his best yet. But even though it didn't match the dramatic backstory of his 2018 triumph, there's a good reason for him wanting to control the narrative this time around.
Why a Bathurst finale is risky business for Supercars
The Bathurst Grand Final may provide Supercars its greatest spectacle yet – but there's a risk it will force the series to face a hard truth.
Why Scott McLaughlin must become an IndyCar driver
Scott McLaughlin, two-time and current Supercars champion, should have been making his NTT IndyCar Series debut for Team Penske at the GP of Indianapolis, but the Covid-19 pandemic forced a rescheduling that has put the brakes on his career switch. But David Malsher-Lopez explains why the New Zealander deserves this opportunity as soon as possible.
Tickford's 10-year wait for James Courtney
When the Supercars season resumes James Courtney will be a Tickford Racing driver – but it's not the first time the star driver has flirted with the famous Ford squad.