Kiwi Shane van Gisbergen has secured the Supercars title for 2016 after finishing third at the Sydney 500 on Saturday.

Van Gisbergen held a 191-point lead heading into race 28 of the season and only needed to finish in the top five to secure the title.

"What an amazing year ... It's a pretty awesome day," he said.

The penultimate race of the season was an eventful one, with the eventual champion crashing into his predecessor, Mark Winterbottom, on lap 10.

Red Bull's Van Gisbergen tried to overtake on the inside line of a corner and clipped the left rear side of Winterbottom's Ford, sending the 2015 winner into a spin.

He was hit with a drive-through penalty and Winterbottom said "he should use his head a little bit".

Both van Gisbergen and Red Bull team boss Mark Dutton accepted blame for the incident, but it was not enough to stop him claiming the title.