Two of the Championship 4 drivers—Chase Elliott and Martin Truex Jr.—have NASCAR Cup Series championships to their credit, but Elliott is the only one who can go back-to-back with a victory in Sunday’s season finale at Phoenix Raceway (3 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
If Elliott can win a second straight title, he’ll join fellow Hendrick Motorsports driver Jimmie Johnson as the only Cup competitors in the 21st century to win consecutive championships. Johnson won five straight from 2006 through 2010.
The last driver before Johnson to go back-to-back was another Hendrick stalwart—Jeff Gordon in 1997 and 1998.
“I think, having gone through the motions last year, we learned a lot about ourselves and about what’s important,” Elliott said. “How to perform in a big moment is a nice thing you can carry with you forward. On the same token, we didn’t have any of that experience last year, and it worked out OK.
“I feel like, for us, we just dive into what matters, and the guy who goes the fastest and runs the best race and executes a good day on Sunday will be rewarded, and that’s where our focus is.
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.
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