Shane van Gisbergen and Austin Hill’s on-track feud took a new turn after a closed-door meeting called by NASCAR ahead of this weekend’s races at Echopark Speedway in Atlanta. The two Chevrolet drivers faced off in a high-speed incident last Sunday at Chicagoland, where van Gisbergen’s No. 97 Trackhouse Chevrolet made contact with Hill’s Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet during a pass attempt. The collision sent Hill’s car into the wall, prompting Richard Childress to voice frustration over the radio, calling the move “blatant.”
NASCAR’s official penalty report released Tuesday found no infractions against either driver. Mike Forde, NASCAR’s VP of racing communication, confirmed the contact was “100% intentional and penalty-worthy” but noted officials opted for mediation instead. The hauler meeting, part of NASCAR’s broader approach to managing driver conflicts, marked van Gisbergen’s first such encounter with the organization over intentional wrecks. Hill, meanwhile, has a history with NASCAR’s disciplinary measures, including a suspension and loss of playoff points nearly a year ago after a retaliatory move in the Xfinity Series.
Van Gisbergen described the meeting as a learning experience, though he admitted the situation left him conflicted. “I was racing hard, and the outcome wasn’t what I wanted,” he said. “I intended to run in there hard and hopefully get inside him, and it didn’t work out.” He emphasized he didn’t want to “escalate” the rivalry, which he said has persisted for three years. “I’m the one with a lot to lose,” he added, hinting at the stakes for both drivers ahead of this weekend’s races.
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Hill’s response was more measured, with the driver expressing hope the incident would mark the end of their ongoing tension. “We’re going to go race,” he told Sirius XM’s Lee Spencer. “I’m looking forward to it.” Yet van Gisbergen suggested Hill’s competitive nature might complicate that goal. “He’s the kind of personality who feels like he’s got to get the last laugh,” van Gisbergen said. “He threatened that, I guess. But yeah, it’s what it is.”
The drivers’ upcoming schedules highlight the stakes. Hill will compete in Saturday’s O’Reilly Series race, where he’s vying for a championship, and Sunday’s Cup Series event in the No. 33 RCR Chevrolet—a car he inherited after Kyle Busch’s death this spring. For van Gisbergen, Sunday’s race at Atlanta represents a chance to build on his recent oval track success, including a career-best sixth-place finish there earlier this year.
