Shane van Gisbergen Wins Pole for NASCAR Go Bowling at The Glen

By Bob Francis Motorsports Reporter, Managing Editor Go Full Throttle Racing News May 9, 2026

WATKINS GLEN, NY — Shane van Gisbergen won the NASCAR Cup Series Busch Light Pole Award for the Go Bowling at The Glen with a lap of 71.165 seconds, 123.937 mph. This is SVG’s fifth pole in 62 NASCAR Cup Series races, his first pole and second top-10 start in 2026, and his first pole in three races at Watkins Glen International.

Trackhouse Racing driver Shane van Gisbergen celebrates after winning the pole for Sunday afternoon’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Watkins Glen International. (Image Credit: Sean Gardner | Getty Images)

Qualifying Fast Facts:

Go Bowling at The Glen Busch Pole Award Pole Winner: Shane van Gisbergen Age: 37 Team : №97 — Superfile Chevrolet Owner: Justin Marks Crew Chief: Stephen Doran

Trackhouse Racing’s Shane van Gisbergen navigates his №97 Chevrolet around Watkins Glen International during NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying. (Image Credit: Chris Graythen | Getty Images)

Michael McDowell qualified 2nd, posting his third top-10 start of 2026 and his fifth in 17 races at Watkins Glen International.

Austin Cindric was 3rd, posting his third top-10 start at Watkins Glen International. It is his fourth in 12 races this season.

Connor Zilisch (fifth) was the fastest qualifying rookie.

Qualifying Results

Shane van Gisbergen (who comes to NASCAR from New Zealand) navigated the seven-turn circuit in 71.165 seconds (123.937 mph) on the first of two qualifying laps to beat Spire Motorsports’ Michael McDowell (123.488 mph) for the top starting spot by 0.259 seconds.

“I did nail it on my first lap,” van Gisbergen said of the Bus Stop at the end of the long backstretch, where he gained more than two tenths of a second on the field. “The first half of the lap was pretty average, I thought.

“My second lap, I had less tire grip, but it was a better lap, so I think I was ahead until the Bus Stop, and then I mucked it up. My first lap was really good there — probably got it right, and maybe the others got it wrong. But generally, that is a really strong point for me.”

“The fall-off was insane,” van Gisbergen said. “I didn’t expect that. The marbles and the fall-off was extreme today. It’s kind of like Bristol when it’s cold. The tires would fall apart. It was very interesting. We fell off four seconds or so.

“Crazy. It’ll be a good race to watch but probably a hard one to manage.”

Sunday’s Go Bowling at the Glen is scheduled to start at 3 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.