Elliott Cautiously Optimistic Entering ROVAL Eliminator

Chase Elliott (Nigel Kinrade/NKP photo)

TALLADEGA, Ala. – Despite trials and tribulations Sunday afternoon, Chase Elliott was able to leave Talladega Superspeedway with cautious optimism headed into the Round of 12 elimination race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL.

To start, the YellaWood 500 looked like a promising race. Elliott hung around the top 10 throughout the day, and mastered the race well enough to where he had a chance to visit victory lane.

But that potential later turned into a harsh reality, as Elliott was among those who fell victim to a NASCAR Cup Series record, 28-car wreck with five laps to go in regulation.

Nine stage points, a lap led, and excellent Chevrolet teamwork in the draft all looked to be down the drain for the 28-year-old from Dawsonville, Ga.

However, an upset winner in Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – combined with playoff rival Austin Cindric being caught up in the ‘Big One’ as well despite leading 29 laps from below the cut line — helped to mitigate the damage done to Elliott’s playoff push, despite a rough 29th-place finish.

“I thought Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and I had a really good system going throughout the race. I was really pleased with my spot.,” said Elliot of his partnership with Stenhouse, who became a two-time Talladega winner Sunday.

“I thought a lot of what was going to transpire was in my hands, which is what I want at the end of these things. Unfortunately, what was in my hands ended up biting us,” he added. “I don’t really know what you do about that.”

Elliott explained it wasn’t a matter of what his No. 9 Kelley Blue Book Chevy team did throughout the race, it was just tough luck.

“We were in a good position, executed a good second-half of the race. We were right there when it counted,” he noted.

Cindric, who spun while battling for the lead, clipped Elliott’s rear end and sent him for a ride, which ended with a hard hit to the inside SAFER Barrier.

“I thought I had it missed,” he lamented. “[Cindric] just barely clipped me, and it sent me spinning.”

But even with his car, race winning hopes, and potential playoff fate all spiraling amid his spin, Elliott miraculously sustained a minimal impact to his hopes of advancing to the Round of 8.

With fellow playoff hopeful Daniel Suarez having to serve a pit road pass through penalty to begin the race for failed pre-race inspection, and later wrecking in stage one, Elliott caught his first break.

When Cindric, who led the most laps in his Talladega Cup Series career, became the catalyst for the final wreck, it also helped Elliott. Add to that playoff drivers Chase Briscoe and Joey Logano having their races spoiled due to the same lap-183 wreck, and it all became a recipe for survival despite adversity.

What could have been bad luck for Elliott actually worked out when the race and carnage was settled. Having consecutive top 10s in the last two weeks, as well as a solid regular season, also benefited him as far as having a bit of a points cushion to fall back on.

Now Elliott holds the final transfer spot headed into a critical elimination at Charlotte on the ROVAL. The task is simple for the past Cup Series champion there: stay out of trouble and be in the mix at the end.

While those objectives are easier said than done, Elliott has a strong record on the ROVAL, though he will have to navigate a recent reconfiguration to the course at turns six and 16. He’s won twice on the road course in 2019 and 2020 and has led laps in the last four years the Cup Series has visited the track.

As known around the Cup Series garage, if one advances in the postseason, it wipes the slate clean in the march toward the championship race at Arizona’s Phoenix Raceway in November. For Elliott, he just needs to finish strong at a track where he’s made a name for himself in road course racing in the past.

Coverage of the Bank of America ROVAL 400 begins Sunday, Oct. 13, at 2 p.m. ET on NBC, the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.