Shane van Gisbergen Secures Fourth Consecutive Pole at Sonoma
Shane van Gisbergen continued his impressive form in NASCAR by clinching his fourth straight pole position in both the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series. During Saturday’s qualifying at Sonoma, van Gisbergen’s time of 1:14.594 secured him the top spot, marking his fourth career pole and third of the 2025 season.
“I’m shaking,” van Gisbergen expressed after his qualifying run. "That was pretty full-on. I’m stoked to have Red Bull on the car. Thank you to Trackhouse and Chevy — amazing car. We weren’t very good in practice, but new tires fixed it. So, yeah, hopefully, we can be good in the race. What a good day."
In preparation for the race, van Gisbergen noted he needed “a bit more rear grip and a bit better balance," indicating room for adjustment before the main event.
Joining him on the front row is Chase Briscoe, who clocked in just 0.250 seconds off the pole time. Rounding out the top five are William Byron, Ross Chastain, and A.J. Allmendinger. The remaining top ten qualifiers include Ty Gibbs, Ryan Blaney, Tyler Reddick, Alex Bowman, and Christopher Bell.
This qualifying performance also marks a significant milestone, as it is the first pole position for a Cup car with Red Bull as the primary sponsor since Kasey Kahne’s pole at Atlanta in September 2011.
The session was largely incident-free, though there were a few minor off-track excursions and a spin by Blaney. Byron set an early pace in Group A with a 1:15.025, but van Gisbergen quickly eclipsed that time in Group B, showcasing both speed and precision on the road course.
Katherine Legge did not set a qualifying time, placing her at the back of the grid in 37th.
The stage is set for an exciting race as van Gisbergen seeks to convert his pole position into a race victory at Sonoma tomorrow.
