A Dominant Stretch for Chase Elliott and NAPA

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (Oct. 7, 2014) – NAPA AUTO PARTS driver Chase Elliott set sail on the longest uninterrupted portion of the NASCAR Nationwide season 18 weeks ago. It all started on Saturday, June 14th, and now the end is in sight with this weekend’s Friday night race under the lights at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Through the demanding stretch, Elliott and the NAPA KNOW HOW team have reeled off a win at Chicagoland Speedway in July, eight top-five finishes, and 14 top-10 finishes. Maybe the most satisfying statistic is his ascent to the points lead. Following the last off-weekend in the Nationwide Series (first weekend in June), Elliott entered the enduring 18-week stretch third in championship points, 22 points behind leader and JR Motorsports teammate Regan Smith. In just 119 days, Elliott has overcome the deficit and now leads Smith by 38 points, good for an astounding 60-point swing.

Now with only four races to go in what’s been an exciting rookie season for the 18-year-old Dawsonville, Ga. rookie, Elliott will carry a healthy points lead (+38 over Smith) in to Friday’s Nationwide race, looking to rebound from a season-low 37th-place finish at Charlotte back in May. The Nationwide Series will then have a two week bye, with the NAPA AUTO PARTS team gearing up for the infamous three-race homestretch. Ahead on the schedule includes races at Texas Motor Speedway, where Chase won his first career Nationwide Series race, Phoenix International Raceway and the grand finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Saturday, Nov. 15th.

In the Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings, Elliott also is still over-powering Ty Dillon by 50 points.

All eyes will be on Charlotte Motor Speedway this Friday night when the Drive for the Cure 300 kicks off at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2 and PRN/Sirius XM.

Driver Quotes | Chase Elliott

On Charlotte Motor Speedway:
“My NAPA AUTO PARTS team and I are looking forward to rebounding from last week at Kansas this Friday night under the lights at Charlotte. Back in May we didn’t have the strongest run at Charlotte, but we’ve made improvements along the way and we are excited to get there and get down to business. Hopefully we get things turned around there and have a better run this go-around. With just four races to go, there’s no time to sit back, we have to stay focused and execute to our fullest potential going into the back-to-back bye weekends. That way, we are in a more comfortable position heading into Texas, Phoenix and finally Homestead to conclude the season.”

MEDIA INFORMATION

TV: ESPN2 (7:00 pm ET)

RADIO: PRN & Sirius XM Ch 90 (7:00 pm ET)

FIRST PRACTICE: 10/9, 3:30 pm-4:30 pm ET (NO TV)

FINAL PRACTICE: 10/9, 5:30 pm-6:50 pm ET (ESPN 2)

QUALIFYING: 10/10, 4:10 pm ET (NO TV)

GREEN FLAG: 10/10, 7:30 pm ET (ESPN 2)

Charlotte TV Listings

Thursday, October 9

1:30 PM     NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Practice   NO TV

3:30 PM   NASCAR Nationwide Series Practice   NO TV

5:30 PM   NASCAR Nationwide Series Final Practice  ESPN 2

7:20 PM    NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Qualifying   ESPN 2

Friday, October 10

3:00 PM     NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Practice   ESPN 2

4:10 PM   NASCAR Nationwide Series Qualifying  NO TV

5:30 PM      NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Final Practice  ESPN 2

7:30 PM   NASCAR Nationwide Series Race   ESPN 2

Saturday, October 11

7:30 PM   NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race   ABC

2014 NATIONWIDE SERIES DRIVER POINTS

1. Chase Elliott 1,068

2. Regan Smith -38

3. Ty Dillon -40

4. Brian Scott -57

5. Elliott Sadler -60

2014 SUNOCO ROOKIE OF THE YEAR POINTS

1. Chase Elliott 307

2. Ty Dillon. -50

3. Chris Buescher -88

4. Dylan Kwasniewski -148

5. Ryan Reed -153

NAPA: @theNAPAnetwork & @NAPARacing

CHASE ELLIOTT: @ChaseElliott

JR Motorsports: @JRMotorsports

For Chase Elliott Merchandise, please visit ChaseElliott.com.