HAMPTON, Ga. — Chase Elliott doesn’t present emotion usually, however the exhilaration he confirmed in successful Sunday evening at Atlanta indicated that this win was a spotlight amongst his 20 NASCAR Cup Series victories.
Elliott wasn’t the one one excited.
Having grown up and nonetheless residing 85 miles from the observe, Elliott stays NASCAR’s hottest driver and one among Georgia’s favourite sons in the case of athletes.
Chase Elliott celebrates following the operating of the NASCAR Cup Sequence Quaker State 400
That was most evident within the roar of the gang as they cheered his triumph.
“To see them that excited after the race for me was simply loopy,” Elliott mentioned. “It was surreal. I do not actually understand how else to explain it. It is simply a kind of moments you would like you may bottle up and relive it.”
Elliott hasn’t had a lot of an opportunity to expertise victory celebrations in recent times.
The 2020 Cup champion snapped a 44-race winless streak with the win. Not solely had he not gained a race this 12 months, he had not even gained a stage. In his earlier 99 begins, Elliott had managed only one victory.
So whereas he had 5 high fives and 9 high 10s in 17 races coming into Sunday evening, Elliott’s solid-but-no-trophy season had the vibe of extra pretender than contender.
Chase Elliott celebrates after successful the NASCAR Cup Sequence Quaker State 400
The victory Saturday evening perhaps modified all that. He gained a wild race the place solely 21 drivers completed on the lead lap and 12 of the 40 automobiles had been eradicated by accidents.
The racing at Atlanta, a 1.54-mile high-banked observe, is meant to be the identical fashion as Daytona and Talladega. However drivers might usually make runs even with out assist. Now after they had assist, the run was just about unstoppable.
The runs on the finish had been livid, and probably the greatest on this fashion of racing, Brad Keselowski, was out entrance within the ultimate laps. However Elliott, with the assistance of a push from Hendrick teammate Alex Bowman, received out entrance after which Keselowski had no assist as Bowman definitely wasn’t going to push Keselowski previous his teammate.
“All of the playing cards fell on the precise locations there these final couple laps,” Elliott mentioned. “What a loopy race. … It was wild from my seat. I am so glad we received to run that factor on the market to the top.”
Elliott in all probability wouldn’t have gained with out the push he might depend on from a teammate reminiscent of Bowman.
“I did not actually have a alternative there on the final lap of what I used to be going to do,” Bowman mentioned. “There wasn’t a possibility for me to win the race, sadly. The best way the race would shuffle the chief out each handful of laps, I simply led too early there. … I simply received the timing fallacious and did not preserve management the race.”
For Bowman, having Elliott win the race was higher than the opposite drivers, as Bowman is on the bubble to make the playoffs on factors. Elliott was a winless driver however appeared to be in a snug place so far as factors.
However the remainder of the drivers jockeying for the win — Brad Keselowski was second, adopted by Bowman, Tyler Reddick, Erik Jones, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Zane Smith — might have impacted Bowman’s hopes to make the playoffs.
“I did not take into consideration that, however you are not fallacious,” Bowman mentioned about Elliott’s win being good for him personally. “Clearly, it is a group of us [Hendrick drivers] out right here, so having a Hendrick automotive in victory lane is all the time a very good factor.
Alex Bowman places on warmth shields previous to the operating of the NASCAR Cup Sequence Quaker State 400
Clearly, it was a very good factor for Elliott, who might take delight in successful the wild race however as he famous, he’ll take wins any manner he can get them.
“Simply to win a race is good on the whole,” Elliott mentioned. I am not going to get choosy with whether or not it is wild or boring. It was good to return out on the nice of that. It might have been one among 5 or 6 of us on the finish.
“For me, luckily, the runs simply actually timed up on the good time, and we had been capable of do one thing with them.”
Elliott has had up-and-down outcomes at Atlanta, with just one top-10 end in his 4 begins since a win in July 2022. He has not run nicely when he has sported a paint scheme designed by a affected person of Youngsters’s Healthcare of Atlanta as a part of a fund-raising program by his basis.
In order that simply made a particular evening further particular.
It was a particular evening within the making during the last couple of months. A nasty pit cease at Kansas ruined his probability in that race in early Could. Within the earlier two weeks, he completed third at Mexico Metropolis and fifth at Pocono, the place he confirmed extra velocity.
Elliott doesn’t get so absorbed within the outcomes as a lot as the method and the best way they race, no matter what occurs with the outcomes.
“Had been we related? Did we truly a shot? I consider on this sport, when you’re doing all these proper issues, that’s one thing to be happy with,” Elliott mentioned. “And when you’re doing them recurrently, you’re going to get your flip. The final three or 4 weeks have been an instance of that.”
And the way will Elliott have a good time within the wee hours of Sunday morning after he glad his media obligations? He deliberate to drive himself house.
“It’s not that far,” mentioned Elliott, who ought to be capable to make the journey in about two hours. “I’m going to sleep in my mattress.”
Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR and INDYCAR for FOX Sports activities. He has spent a long time overlaying motorsports, together with over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting Information, NASCAR Scene journal and The (Daytona Seaside) Information-Journal. Observe him on Twitter @bobpockrass.
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