Motorsport: Van Gisbergen going all out for series podium

Shane Van Gisbergen. Photo / Getty Images

His opponents might think he's a dirty driver but that's not going to stop Shane Van Gisbergen from pushing things to the limit as he eyes a podium finish in the V8 Supercar Championship.

Fourth on the ladder ahead of the final round in Sydney this weekend, Van Gisbergen needs to make up 35 points on Mark Winterbottom to claim third place for the season.

But the New Zealander isn't going to rein in his style to achieve the result, despite being named dirtiest driver by his peers in this year's Auto Action Driver Poll.

"I don't see them as dirty, but they are aggressive sometimes," Van Gisbergen said of his tactics on the tarmac. And sometimes you have to be aggressive to get the passes down and get up to the front.

"So that's the way I like to drive, I like to give it a big crack so hopefully it helps us get third back in the championship."

The 22-year-old says he's determined to do even better next year and claim the V8 Supercar Championship.

"Next year we have to own it," he said. "It's going to take quite a lot because Jamie Whincup and Craig Lowndes, they're so good at the moment. So to beat them next year we're going to have to step up but I think we we can do it."

Van Gisbergen debuted with the Stone Brothers team in 2009 and claimed his first two wins in front of his home crowd in New Zealand and again in Darwin during this year's V8 Supercar Championship.

While the battle remains for third overall, top spot looks to be the preserve of two-time champion Whincup who is 188 points clear of the second placed Lowndes.

With 150 points on offer for each race Whincup would likely need to bomb out completely in at least one of the two days' racing to gives Lowndes a shot at the title.

- AAP