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Bathurst champion finds love very close to home – he’s now dating the glamorous co-owner of his V8 Supercars team
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The relationship between Shane van Gisbergen and his team boss Jessica Dane was a closely guarded secret in V8Supercars circles, but in the wake of his Bathurst win it has now become public.
Despite the potential for professional conflict, the quietly 33-year-old Dane has at least seen things since the Kiwi claimed victory in Bathurst earlier this month.
Dane is the daughter of the former owner of Triple Eight Racing, Roland Dane, who was instrumental in the development of the team.
Dane was a co-driver for van Gisbergen on the Australasian rally circuit this year
Having bought a stake in the team in 2017, Dane was also the team’s deputy team manager for this year’s Bathurst entry.
She also worked closely with Craig Lowndes before his retirement in 2018.
Dane is also an avid motorsport enthusiast and owns and rides Ducati motorcycles
Dane is now the second highest stakeholder on the team at 30 percent, behind Tony Quinn [VIP Petfoods founder], which has a 40 percent cut. Her father still has 11 percent, while Jamie Whincup, former driver and current boss of the team, has a 19 percent share.
Dane is the Commercial Operations Manager, overseeing all aspects of the team’s day-to-day operations, sponsorship, partnerships, HR and legal affairs.
Wide World of Sports reports that the romantic pairing is an “open secret,” but they are hesitant to discuss the details of their relationship.
In recent weeks, however, Dane has indicated that he is not engaged.
Dane has at least given a glimpse of their world through her role as Van Gisbergen’s partner on the Australasian rally circuit. Dane is also said to have accompanied van Gisbergen in his first 24-hour race at Le Mans.
Van Gisbergen has won two of the past three Bathursts, after a win in 2020 with Garth Tander.
Dane holds the Peter Brock trophy that van Gisbergen won in Bathurst while sleeping it off
The victory at Bathurst meant that Van Gisbergen had broken Scott McLaughlin’s record of 18 wins in one season, and he is set to expand that number even further with races in Gold Coast and Adelaide.
The Triple Eight Racing terminator has won nearly two-thirds of the races this year and 10 of the last 12 since the NTI Townsville 500 in July.
Jamie Whincup, Jessica Dane and Shane van Gisbergen with the Triple Eight Racing team