Elliott Improves to Second in Points following Michigan Race

• Chase Elliott and the No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts team were sixth fastest in Saturday’s rain-shortened practice session.
• After qualifying was rained out, the lineup for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Michigan International Speedway was set according to the metric, with Elliott and the No. 9 team starting sixth.
• Weather plagued the race on Sunday, with a rain shower delaying the start. Once the field took the green flag, Elliott powered to a second-place finish in stage one. Staying out during the stage break, he took over the top spot, but another shower forced officials to postpone the remainder of the race until Monday.
• Leading laps in stage two once back under way on Monday, Elliott ultimately ended the second stage in 12th.
• During the final stage, he spent most of the laps inside the top 10 and paced the field for more circuits along the way. A late-race caution sent the race into overtime. Elliott was battling for a top-10 finish when contact was made with another car and he lost his momentum. He finished the race in the 15th position.
• Elliott improved to second in the regular season points standings with only two races remaining before the playoffs begin.

Chase Elliott and the No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts team unloaded a fast No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 at Michigan International Speedway. During Saturday’s rain-shortened practice session, the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion posted the sixth-fastest lap. Weather ultimately forced officials to cancel qualifying, and the starting lineup was set according to the metric. Elliott was gridded sixth to start the race on Sunday. The field made its way onto the track for pace laps when a rain shower enveloped the track, bringing out the red flag. Once the rain cleared, drivers returned to their cars, and they finally took the green flag. Elliott improved to fourth by lap two, but as the run went on, he began to lose positions on the track. Still running in the top 10, the 28-year-old driver was scored in the seventh position when a caution came out on lap 38. No. 9 crew chief Alan Gustafson, who was making his 700th start atop the box in the Cup Series, called Elliott to pit road for four tires, fuel and an adjustment. A fast stop by the No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts crew gained Elliott five spots, making him the first car off pit road. With some cars opting not to pit, Elliott lined up on the bottom of row three for the restart with just three laps to go in the stage. Back under the green flag, he improved his position to second, ending the stage on lap 45.

Under the stage-ending caution, Elliott took over the top spot as the leader made his way to pit road while Elliott remained on the track. Before the field could take the green flag for the second stage, another rain shower forced the second red flag of the day. This time, officials were unable to restart the race, ultimately postponing the remainder until Monday. Once engines were re-fired on Monday morning and cars were back on the track, Elliott chose the outside lane on the front row for the restart. He led the field back to the green flag on lap 56 and remained out front for two laps before the No. 8 of Kyle Busch worked his way by. Elliott continued to hold his own inside the top-three running order. He was scored in the second position when green-flag pit stops got underway on lap 85. Gustafson called Elliott to pit road on lap 87 for four fresh tires and fuel. As the field slowly finished cycling through the round of pit stops, Elliott found his way up to fourth on lap 104. He was in that same position when the caution came out on lap 109. Elliott brought the No. 9 NAPA Chevrolet to the attention of his crew for four tires and fuel. Some cars opted not to pit, and others took only two tires, which put Elliott 12th for the restart on lap 116. Right after returning to green, another incident occurred, which ultimately caused the stage to end under the caution flag. Elliott finished stage two in 12th position.

Staying out during the stage break, the Dawsonville, Georgia, native was 10th to choose his lane, opting for the outside. After taking the green flag for the final stage on lap 126, Elliott improved to sixth in a hurry. When a caution came out on lap 137, the team once again opted not to pit. He was scored fifth for the choose and decided to take the inside of the second row. The move turned out to be a good one as Elliott got an excellent restart and rocketed to the lead on lap 142. He continued to pace the field until Gustafson called Elliott to pit road for fuel and four tires on lap 161. The driver of the No. 9 re-entered the track in the 20th position. He cycled back up to seventh with 12 laps to go and was scored in sixth when a caution came out with just six laps remaining. Staying out, he opted for the outside of row four for the restart. Another incident brought out the yellow flag and sent the race into overtime. This time, Elliott chose the inside lane and was fighting hard for a top-10 finish when contact with another car caused him to lose momentum. When the checkered flag waved, Elliott was scored with a 15th-place finish.

With just two races left in the regular season, he sits second in the points standings, just 10 markers behind the leader.

Start / Finish: 6 / 15
Points Standing / Total: 2nd / 804 pts. (-10)

Next Race: Saturday, August 24, Daytona International Speedway
How to Watch or Listen: 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN or SiriusXM

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