Brake Issue in Final Stage Halts Elliott’s Strong Run at WWT Raceway

• Chase Elliott qualified eighth for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at WWT Raceway, which featured a track-record 18 cautions.
• Elliott and the No. 9 LLumar team earned valuable points, finishing fifth in stage one. They followed that up with a 12th-place result in stage two.
• In the final stage, Elliott was running inside the top 10 on lap 213 when a right-front brake rotor issue sent the No. 9 LLumar Chevrolet into a spin, which ultimately brought an early end to his day. He was relegated to a 31st-place finish.
• The 30-year-old driver is now 11th in the standings with eight races remaining in The Chase.

Chase Elliott and the No. 9 LLumar team qualified eighth on Saturday for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at WWT Raceway. Elliott rolled off from the outside lane for the opening 45-lap stage in what proved to be a long, challenging race. The event featured 18 cautions, the most in track history, with frequent restarts, varying pit strategies and brake issues throughout the field.

An early caution on lap six proved indicative of what was to come. Elliott reported warm brakes and lower air pressure, particularly in the rear, compared with Saturday’s practice and qualifying sessions. Although pit road was open, crew chief Alan Gustafson kept Elliott on track, allowing him to restart seventh on lap 11. Elliott continued to gain positions through the frequent cautions, reaching fifth by the end of stage one despite working to find a preferred lane and managing a tight condition through the center of the corners. At the stage break, the No. 9 LLumar Chevrolet received four tires and fuel.

With a portion of the field staying on track, Elliott restarted 19th on lap 51. He lost several positions maneuvering through an incident ahead on lap 55 and restarted 24th. When the seventh caution was called on lap 65, Gustafson called Elliott to pit road for right-side tires and fuel. Elliott steadily worked his way forward, moving from 16th on lap 73 to 11th by lap 91. When the eighth caution slowed the race for an incident within 10 laps of the stage finish, signaling the end of the stage, Elliott was scored 12th.

At the stage break, Elliott received four tires and fuel and gained two positions on pit road to restart 10th for the final stage. He moved to seventh by lap 148 as brake issues continued to affect the field and contribute to the record number of cautions. When a competitor’s brake issue brought out a caution, Elliott reported that his Chevrolet was tight at times. The team pitted for four tires and fuel, with Elliott restarting 14th after two cars stayed on track. Elliott continued to gain positions through varying pit strategies and frequent restarts, reaching sixth with 48 laps remaining while running third-fastest on track. When the 13th caution came out on lap 198 with 40 laps remaining, the team waited for pit road to open before bringing Elliott in for four tires and fuel. Though slated to restart 10th, Elliott gave up a row with 37 laps to go, choosing the outside lane, where he had found strength throughout the afternoon. By lap 208, he had returned to 10th and was making progress through the field.

An untimely brake rotor issue caused by excessive heat in the right front brought an abrupt end to Elliott’s afternoon on lap 213 while running seventh. The failure caused the No. 9 Chevrolet to spin and make contact with a competitor, forcing Elliott to retire from the race. He was relegated to a 31st-place finish.

“Yeah, really nothing that said it was fixing to break, unfortunately,” Elliott said after his race ended early. “I knew that there had been some issues throughout the day, obviously. I was right behind Ryan (Blaney) when he blew his. I guess it’s kind of the luck of the draw, unfortunately. I just went to make a move on the No. 19 (Chase Briscoe) there. I stepped on the brakes, exploded a rotor and that was about it.

“It’s really unfortunate. I thought the No. 9 LLumar Chevrolet team was having a really solid day. We were right there around the top five. I thought we had the right strategy there at the end. We were able to kind of continue to march forward there. Proud of the effort today. Hate to have another bad week, but we had some good pace and some good stuff to hopefully build on. We’ll try and go get them next weekend at Bristol (Motor Speedway).”

With eight races remaining in The Chase, Elliott is 11th in the standings, 93 points behind the leader.

Start / Finish: 8 / 31
Points Standing / Total: 11th / 2,075 pts. (-93)

Next Race: Saturday, September 19, Bristol Motor Speedway
How to Watch or Listen: 7:30 p.m. ET on USA, SiriusXM or PRN

NAPA: @NAPARacing
Chase Elliott: @ChaseElliott
Hendrick Motorsports: @TeamHendrick
No. 9 Team: @Hendrick9Team