Shane van Gisbergen Rumored to Lose Major Trackhouse Racing Sponsor

In the high-octane world of NASCAR, sponsorship drama is almost as entertaining as the racing itself. Almost. And right now, the rumor mill is churning faster than a pit crew on a green-flag stop.

The subject of today’s gossip? Shane van Gisbergen and the Curious Case of the Disappearing WeatherTech Logo.

For those of you who have been glued to the off-season updates, you may have noticed something odd on the Trackhouse Racing website. Or rather, noticed something missing.

WeatherTech, the Illinois-based accessory giant that’s been slapping its name on just about anything with an engine, seems to have vanished from the partner list for the No. 97 Chevrolet. Is it a glitch? A clerical error? Or is this the automotive equivalent of ghosting after a few successful dates?

1. The WeatherTech Mystery: Here Today, Gone Tomorrow?

WeatherTech isn’t just some small-time decal you slap on a bumper. They are huge. We’re talking IMSA title sponsors, big-budget ads, and a partnership with Trackhouse that was supposed to be a cornerstone for their 2025 program. Late last year, everything was going well. The company was announced as a major backer for both the Kiwi sensation Gisbergen and the up-and-coming Connor Zilisch. The deal was supposedly locked in for 36 races, covering a massive chunk of Gisbergen’s rookie Cup season. So, when eagle-eyed fans (bless their obsessive hearts) spotted that WeatherTech was MIA from the official Trackhouse partners page, eyebrows were raised. In its place? The usual suspects: Moose, Chevrolet, Tootsie, Quad Lock, Siemens, Busch Light, SafetyCulture, Wendy’s, Jockey, and Kubota. It’s a solid lineup, sure, but the absence of the floor-mat kings is glaring. Now, before we go into a complete conspiracy theory, it’s worth noting that neither Trackhouse nor WeatherTech has issued an official statement saying, “It’s not you, it’s me.” But in this sport, silence is often louder than a V8 engine.

2. Gisbergen’s Meteoric Rise

If WeatherTech is bailing, you have to ask: Why? Gisbergen isn’t precisely a risky bet. The guy is a machine. Remember Chicago 2023? He rolled into his debut NASCAR Cup Series race and won the whole thing, effectively dropping the mic on the entire field. It was legendary. Fast forward to his 2024 Xfinity run and his subsequent promotion to full-time Cup racing in 2025, and you have one of the most exciting narratives in motorsports. He won five races in his rookie season—including wins at Mexico City, Chicago, and Sonoma—with WeatherTech riding shotgun. He’s arguably the most successful newcomer we’ve seen in years. You’d think a sponsor would want to hold onto that kind of momentum with a death grip. Instead, we’re left refreshing a webpage, wondering if the contract got lost in the mail. While the WeatherTech situation is a bit of a downer, it’s not all doom and gloom for the No. 97 team. Enter: Red Bull. If you’ve been missing the iconic blue and silver cans in NASCAR, you’re in luck. Gisbergen snagged a massive partnership that sees the energy drink giant returning to the sport in a big way. They’ve signed on as a primary sponsor for five Cup races, plastering their logo on the No. 88 car for big-ticket events like Las Vegas and Daytona. Trackhouse is playing a game of musical chairs with its sponsors and car numbers. Ross Chastain is staying put in the No. 1 Chevy, but Gisbergen is making the switch to the No. 97, leaving the No. 88 entry for Connor Zilisch. It’s a lot of moving parts, and maybe the WeatherTech omission is just a casualty of this restructuring. Or perhaps it’s not.

3. What Does This Mean for 2026?

If WeatherTech is truly out, it leaves a gap, but Trackhouse has proven it can hustle. They’ve grown their relationship with Red Bull, which is expanding to be a primary partner for 25 races in 2026. That is huge. However, the uncertainty surrounding WeatherTech is a reminder of how fickle this business can be. Sponsors come and go like tire wear. Freeway and Coca-Cola dipped after Daniel Suarez left, indicating that loyalty often lies with the driver or the specific contract cycle, rather than with the team colors. For Gisbergen, the pressure is on to keep performing. Winning cures everything, they say. If he keeps finding victory lane, it won’t matter whose logo is on the hood—sponsors will be lining up around the block to get a piece of the Kiwi magic. For now, we wait. We wait for a press release, a tweet, or a paint scheme reveal that clears this all up. Until then, the mystery of the missing floor mat sponsor remains the most intriguing subplot of the off-season.

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