Shane Van Gisbergen extended his reign on NASCAR's road courses with a commanding victory at Watkins Glen International this Sunday. The Trackhouse Racing driver controlled 38 of 90 laps in New York, including the final 17, to score his fourth win of the year.

Van Gisbergen, who renewed his contract with Trackhouse the same weekend, crossed the finish line ahead of Joe Gibbs Racing's Christopher Bell. With this result, he equals Dan Gurney as the only driver to score his first five Cup Series wins exclusively on road courses.

Contract extension comes at perfect time

The multi-year renewal with Trackhouse coincided with another masterclass from the former Supercars champion. "This is what you dream about, right?" Van Gisbergen said about his perfect weekend. His four 2025 wins (Mexico, Chicago, Sonoma and now Watkins Glen) set a rookie record and tie him with Denny Hamlin as the season's winningest driver.

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Bell finished second after passing Chris Buescher on the final lap. "I'm happy because we've been struggling to find our rhythm," Bell said. "The cars have been good. It's great to have a good day, but frustrating that the #88 beat us so badly. That team really has it figured out."

Buescher, last year's Watkins Glen winner, completed the podium in RFK Racing's #17 Ford. His third-place finish keeps him in the final playoff spot by 34 points over teammate Ryan Preece, with two regular-season races remaining at Richmond and Daytona Beach.

Blaney couldn't maintain pole position

Ryan Blaney surprised on Saturday by beating Van Gisbergen in qualifying, earning his second pole of the year with a 122.568 mph lap. The Penske driver led the first 18 laps and returned to the front between laps 37-53, but finished sixth.

"Ninety laps will be harder to beat him tomorrow, but you have to start somewhere," Blaney had said Saturday about challenging Van Gisbergen. His pole was Team Penske's 150th in Cup Series history.

William Byron finished fourth in Hendrick Motorsports' #24 Chevrolet and extended his regular-season points lead to 42 over teammate Chase Elliott, who finished 26th. This marks Elliott's first finish outside the top 20 in 2025.

Chase Briscoe placed fifth in Joe Gibbs Racing's #19 Toyota, passing Blaney on the final lap. Daniel Suárez came seventh, followed by 23XI Racing teammates Bubba Wallace and Tyler Reddick. Ross Chastain rounded out the top 10.

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Playoff picture taking shape

With the win, Van Gisbergen locked his playoff spot and now has four season victories, tying Denny Hamlin for most wins this year. Thirteen drivers have secured playoff berths via regular-season wins.

The three remaining spots among the 16 qualifiers will be determined by points among winless drivers. Currently those positions are held by Tyler Reddick, Hendrick's Alex Bowman and Chris Buescher. Buescher's third-place finish at Watkins Glen maintains his 34-point cushion over teammate Ryan Preece for the final spot.

Kyle Busch sits 102 points below the cutoff. A new winner at Richmond or Daytona could dramatically alter the landscape by reducing the points-available spots.

The race featured three cautions for eight laps, with eight lead changes among six drivers. The winner's average speed was 101.263 mph in the 2-hour, 10-minute, 39-second event. Buescher won Stage 1 for 10 crucial points, while Van Gisbergen took Stage 2.

Kyle Larson retired on lap 75, while the final three positions went to Katherine Legge (89 laps), Josh Bilicki (89) and JJ Yeley (89). Brad Keselowski, who needs a win to make the playoffs, finished 31st and has backup driver Joey Hand ready should his fourth child arrive in coming weeks.

The NASCAR Cup Series continues Saturday at Richmond Raceway with the Cook Out 400 at 7:30 p.m. ET.