FORT WORTH, Texas – The Round of 8 in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs hasn’t been particularly bad for Chase Elliott and his Hendrick Motorsports team.
Finishing seventh and sixth respectively at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway and in Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway still has the Dawsonville, Ga. native with a gap to move above the cutoff line an opportunity to compete for Cup Series championship at Homestead-Miami (Fla.) Speedway in two weeks.
Elliott’s No. 9 Kelley Blue Book Chevrolet struggled for speed throughout the weekend in the Lone Star State, but constant changes from crew chief Alan Gustafson and a smart race by Elliott moved the three-time Cup winner forward throughout the race with his race car the strongest when it counted most – not to mention, he had a little luck too.
“Yeah, I mean, got kind of lucky to finish there, but it is what it is and move on,” Elliott said after the race. “
Seemingly dejected about his performance, the 22-year-old was more upset about how difficult Texas has become, especially to pass.
“Yeah, just a really frustrating race track ever since they ruined it two years ago. I hate that. I don’t know what genius decided to pave this place or take the banking out of one and two. Not a good move for the entertainment factor, in my opinion.”
Elliott’s finish was ahead of fellow Playoff competitors Kurt Busch, Aric Almirola, Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch and Clint Bowyer, but Elliott returns to Phoenix sixth in points and 39 points behind Truex who holds the final transfer spot with one race remaining in the round.
With second and third place finishes in his last two races at Phoenix’s 1.0-mile oval, Elliott is glad to be heading to the desert to a race track where he feel like he can win and stamp his entrance into the Championship 4.
“We’ve got to win. Simple.”
“I feel better about Phoenix than I did about today, for sure. Yeah, we’ll see. I mean, I don’t know till we get there. Yeah, tough spot to be in. But ultimately you got to be in a must-win situation at Homestead if you ever make it down there, so you might as well get used to it and like it.”
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01.
