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Following the Coke Zero Sugar 400, Chase Elliott missed out on the playoffs for the first time in his career. The 2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion won’t get to contend for his second championship. He’s got 10 races to earn Hendrick Motorsports an owners championship, though.
Following the race at Daytona, Chase Elliott didn’t seem as bummed out as you might expect. It seems that he made peace with however this was going to turn out. He was right there at the front when he needed to be and just didn’t have the speed to get a run.
It was a tough break for Elliott and his team to come so close but be so far from the playoffs.
“Looking forward to these next 10 [races] and try to make a little noise on that side of things and just try to get ready and prepared for next year,” Elliott said after the race. “But I appreciate everybody’s support through this season, it hasn’t been what I would want by any means but certainly going to be some lessons taken from it and I think we’ll be better for it on the other end.”
Chase Elliott has been eliminated from NASCAR championship contention.
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) August 27, 2023
Hear from him after missing the playoffs for the first time in his career. pic.twitter.com/1y93Lqp5W7
Chase Elliott made the playoffs for seven straight seasons. However, he will not be making his way into the postseason. When you miss seven races due to injury and suspension combined, you just don’t have the points to make it compared to other drivers. It does speak to his performance that he was close enough to almost point his way in, though.
When it came down to it, Elliott needed to win and it just wasn’t in the cards tonight. He made runs, and led laps, but just didn’t get the job done. He came up just short. Next season could be a big comeback.
Chase Elliott out, Bubba Wallace in
With Chris Buescher taking the win in the end, there wasn’t a new winner at Daytona, amazingly. You usually expect a new winner in these races. However, it didn’t come. Bubba Wallace kept his points lead, Ty Gibbs wrecked out early in this race in the big one as he took out Ryan Blaney.
As Chase Elliott misses out on the playoffs, Bubba Wallace makes it into the playoffs. This is the first time ever for Wallace and he ultimately does it at the expense of his good friend Elliott. Wallace was solid all night, avoided danger, and drove well enough to get himself into the championship race.
You can do a lot to prepare for Daytona. However, you can’t guarantee a win. Even though Elliott led for laps and had a fast Chevy Camaro, he couldn’t close the deal. His line didn’t push hard enough in the end, Brad Keselowski shoved Buescher to the front, and the No. 17 won.
NASCAR is heading into the final 10 races of the season and there will be plenty of more drama and heartbreak ahead for many drivers.
More must-reads:
- Insider addresses controversial end to Mets-Cubs game
- Team Penske driver discusses bouncing back after IndyCar St. Pete disqualification
- The 'Highest career PPG in the playoffs' quiz
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