Ross Chastain said following the NASCAR Watkins Glen race on May10, he was reminded again that NASCAR is a team sport.
Chastain didn't fare well individually at Watkins Glen, nor did his new teammate, Connor Zilisch, but the third member of the Trackhouse Racing team, Shane van Gisbergen, earned the team's first win in 2026 on the 2.45-mile road course, giving everyone involved reason to celebrate.
Chastain has now gone 35 races without a win, but welcomed the boost of confidence that came when van Gisnbergen went from 24th to first after a late pit stop and erased a 29.2-second deficit to win by seven seconds.
SVG WINS AT WATKINS GLEN IN COMEBACK: Who won NASCAR Watkins Glen race? Winner is Shane van Gisbergen, plus full results
"It was big for Shane to win," Chastain said. "Honestly and personally, it puts it on me because I know our cars are built the same. It's a reminder that our cars are well-built and capable of winning. It's definitely a big deal for all the men and women at Trackhouse because they know they built three cars that had the ability to go win."
Chastain was in Nashville on May 13 for the unveiling of the guitar trophies at Gibson Guitar Garage for the Cracker Barrel 400 held May 31 at Nashville Superspeedway.
The undeniable expertise of van Gisbergen on road courses obviously contributed to his win. It was his seventh career Cup win, and all have come on road courses. He is tied for third all-time in road-course wins with Chase Elliott.
But the former Australian Supercars champion needed a strong car to chalk up another road-course win, and that is what Chastain focused on.
"I go back and look at it and watch what Shane did, and we know that I had the same racecar," Chastain said. "We definitely did not execute that final stage for sure anywhere close to acceptable. It's humbling to know how fast he is. I'm just proud to know that Trackhouse built three cars that were identical. While there were some minor changes, mine and Shane's cars were very similar. Hopefully, I can keep evolving and getting closer."
Chastain finished 27th at Watkins Glen. He said if he had made better decisions in the last stage, he could have finished in the top-10.
Why Ross Chastain is not happy Cracker Barrel 400 is a night race
Ross Chastain won the Cracker Barrel 400 in 2023 at Nashville Superspeedway, the first year it was a night race. After returning to a daytime start in 2024, the race went back to night in 2025 and will be at night again in 2026 with a 6 p.m. CT start on May 31.
Chastain returned to Nashville in 2024 for the day race and finished 33rd. He was involved in a crash in the first of five overtime attempts. In the 2025 night race, he was much better, finishing 11th.
Even though he has ran better at night, Chastain said he prefers the Cracker Barrel 400 to be at night. The reason? He has become a big fan of the nightlife on Broadway, and night races take away from the time he is able to spend there.
"Selfishly, (a night race) cuts into my time on Broadway post race," Chastain said. "I'm going to be at Tootsie's after the Cup race. I'm just going to have less time now."
Chastain said Trackhouse Racing owner Justin Marks hosted an epic party at Tootsie's after Chastain's 2023 win at Nashville when Tootsie's sponsored Chastain's No. 1 Chevy.
Reach Mike Organ at 615-259-8021 or on X @MikeOrganWriter.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Ross Chastain gained confidence from Shane van Gisbergen at Watkins Glen
