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New Zealand's Shane van Gisbergen, one of the V8 Supercars' most impressive young stars, made an odd but expected announcement when it was confirmed he'll step aside from the sport after next weekend's V8 season finale.

In an official release posted Thursday in Australia, van Gisbergen offered a rather cryptic explanation regarding his decision and also thanked his Stone Brothers Racing team.

“I am leaving V8 Supercars due to personal reasons which I do not wish to discuss in the public domain. I will be moving back home to New Zealand and have no fixed plans for the future," he said.

“I have enjoyed a five successful years with Stone Brothers Racing and was given as unique opportunity by the team to race V8s at a very young age, which I am very grateful for."

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Rumors have swirled around the lead driver for the championship-winning SBR outfit during the past few weeks, with the 23-year-old's displeasure at SBR's move from fielding Fords to building (unproven) customer AMG Mercedes cited as the cause of the fracture between himself and the team.

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SBR ultimately granted his wish, but with a rumored one-year non-compete clause in place, it looks like van Gisbergen chose to sit out of next year’s championship--to hit the proverbial pause button--and wait to see what opportunities exist afterwards.

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