We turn back the clock to the year The Giz was born: 1989
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6:00 AM Mon 9 May, 2011
Source: BigPond Sport
Few New Zealand motor racing exports have made an impact on the V8 Supercars series like Shane van Gisbergen.
The SP Tools racer, who celebrates his 22nd birthday today, is now in his fourth full season in V8 Supercars and is emerging as a serious contender for the 2011 Championship.
At just 19 years of age he signed with Stone Brothers Racing to race full-time in 2008, finishing the year in 15th outright. In 2009 he inched up the points standings to 12th overall, and last year he starred with ten podium finishes.
In front of an adoring crowd the young Kiwi recently won his first ever V8 Supercar race at the ITM400 Hamilton, and he now sits fourth on the championship ladder.
We take a look at what else happened in the year a future star of V8 Supercars was born…
In 1989:
* ‘The Simpsons’ and ‘Seinfeld’ premiered on US television
* Nintendo released their popular hand-held Gameboy
* Rain Man won the Academy Award for Best Picture
* George H.W Bush succeeded Ronald Reagan as president of the United States
* Madonna divorced from Sean Penn
* Mazda’s MX5 was named Wheel’s Magazine’s Car of The Year
And in motorsport …
* Mark Larkham won the Australian Formula Ford Championship after a fierce year-long battle with Russell Ingall.
* Peter Brock took pole position for the Tooheys 1000, which was eventually won by Dick Johnson and John Bowe in a Ford Sierra RS500.
* Dick Johnson won four of the eight rounds of the Australian Touring Car Championship on the way to claiming his second consecutive driver’s title, and his fifth overall.
* Ayrton Senna claimed pole position for the Australian Grand Prix, which was then the final round of the championship held on the streets of Adelaide. Williams-Renault driver Thierry Boutsen won the race and Alain Prost won his third Formula One Driver’s World Championship
* Jason Bright won the Senior Club Championships at Victoria’s Gippsland Go Kart Club
And consider this …
In the summer of 2006 Shane won the New Zealand Formula Ford championship as Russell Ingall was celebrating his first V8 Supercar Championship with SBR.
Just two years later Shane replaced Ingall in the #9 SBR Falcon.
When Shane was 10 years old, Craig Lowndes won his second V8 Supercar Championship.
Shane is now just two positions behind Lowndes in the fight for this year’s Championship.
One of Shane’s heroes is fellow Kiwi Greg Murphy. When Greg was Shane’s age he was still three years away from making his full-time debut in the V8 Supercars Championship.
Shane van Gisbergen’s official website: shanevangisbergen.com
Follow Shane van Gisbergen on Facebook: www.facebook.com/SVGSBR9
