To say Chase Elliott had an up and down day at Phoenix Sunday is an understatement. Elliott was to start sixth but unapproved adjustments prior to the race, NASCAR officials noticed something with the No. 9 Chevy’s side skirts and had the team effect repairs, forced him to drop to the rear of the field prior to the green flag.
He was joined there by his fellow Hendrick Motorsports teammates Kyle Larson and William Byron whose cars had failed pre-race inspection Saturday night. Elliott, who had also started from the rear of the field last November and came back to win the race and his first Cup title, was fifth by lap 60. That’s where he finished in Stage 1. Elliott remained competitive and finished Stage 2 ninth.
During pit stops after the stage however, Elliott was penalized for speeding and again had to start at the rear. He made a valiant effort but could make it no higher than fifth when the checkered flag fell for race winner Marting Truex Jr.
“We struggled really bad all the way up to that very last run, to be honest,” Elliott said. “We got better and had a good pit stop there at the end. Proud of the effort that the Unifirst team put in to pull out a top-five.”
Teammate Larson overcame two speeding penalties including one during a round of green flag pit stops and finished seventh.
“Yeah, I hadn’t felt loose in all day and that last run, I got loose in and just couldn’t get in the corners as aggressive as I needed to,” Larson said. “I ended up guarding my entry zones; my angles for exit aren’t great. It just kind of made everything harder.
“It was weird that I hadn’t had it all day, but all-in-all, I had a really fast car again. That’s very promising and just have to clean up mistakes on my end and have a smoother race.”
William Byron finished just behind Larson in eighth. The fourth Hendrick driver Alex Bowman finished a non-drama filled day in 13th after starting the day 28th.
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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