“There’s blood all up the track“: Shane van Gisbergen shares one shocking threat drivers need to be wary of while racing at Bathurst

By Dheeraj Angadi

Modified Aug 12, 2023 03:29 GMT

NASCAR sensation Shane van Gisbergen recently divulged one horrifying aspect of the iconic Bathurst 1000 race back in Australia. The annual event dubbed The Great Race is under threat by one species, exotic to the land Down Under.

During Van Gisbergen's return to the States, he caught up with NASCAR stalwart Dale Earnhardt Jr as a guest for his popular podcast Dale Jr Download. The two talked about various topics and how kangaroos frequently disrupted the Bathurst race, leaving "blood all up the track".

While the New Zealand driver knows how it feels the confront the mammals while driving in excess of 200mph, Earnhardt Jr didn't have a clue as he had never encountered one in the wild. The two-time Xfinity champion was baffled as van Gisbergen went into the details.

"Kangaroos you gotta worry about... Like we've seen guys hit them and they don't show it on TV. But you go out for the next stint and you can see where it's been hit and there's blood all up the track. It's nuts... They take cars out of the race," he said on the podcast.

To which, Earnhardt Jr. jokingly replied:

"I never, ran across Kangaroos that weren't in captivity I guess."

Van Gisbergen is a two-time winner of the 621-mile (1000 km) race on the Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales. Located on a scenic mountain, the 3.861-mile street track configuration winds up and down the hill. The vertical difference between the highest and the lowest point is a staggering 174 meters.

"But when you do that race and you've got the whole track to yourself and the place is packed. [Mike Davis - are you just holding your breath?]- Across the top, yeah. You get to the straight and you just like hanging on and then have a little break." Shane van Gisbergen added about the race.

Earnhardt Jr. concluded that the iconic track is the most "challenging, treacherous, and dangerous" configuration he has ever seen.

Shane van Gisbergen "having a ball" in his NASCAR oval debut

The 3x Supercars champion lines up for his first NASCAR oval race in the TSport 200 Truck Series race at Indianapolis Raceway Park.

Having qualified 28th in the #41 Niece Motorsport Chevy, he admitted that he was enjoying his time at the 0.686-mile track.

"Had an awesome time getting better. Looks like I'm going to be right in the middle of it all at the start, so it's going to be interesting." Shane van Gisbergen told FS1 post-qualifying.

"I'm having a ball. Just learning so much every lap and hopefully we'll get some long runs in the race so I can get in a rhythm and just learn a lot tonight," he added.

While Friday's outing will be a learning experience for the New Zealander, he will be gunning for the victory in the Verizon 200 at the Brickyard, backing up his win at Chicago.