Elliott Maintains Second in Points after Tough Day at Watkins Glen

• Chase Elliott and the No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts team qualified 20th for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Watkins Glen International.
• Passing proved difficult during the race, so the team used a two-stop pit strategy to try to gain track position. With several teams short-pitting, Elliott stayed out to secure a fourth-place finish in stage one.
• The 29-year-old driver made a green-flag pit stop in stage two and finished the segment in 11th.
• In the final stage, there was a long cycle of green-flag pit stops due to various strategies. Elliott visited pit road on lap 57. He worked his way up to 17th following the stop; however, his tires started to fade in the closing laps, and he dropped back to 26th to end the race.
• Elliott remains second in the points standings with just two races remaining in the regular season. He’s 42 markers behind Hendrick Motorsports teammate William Byron.

Chase Elliott and the No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts team qualified 20th for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Watkins Glen International. With it being difficult to make passes on the 2.45-mile road course, Elliott and the team knew they would likely need to use strategy to gain track position. Elliott spent a majority of the 20-lap first stage in 21st. Several teams made the call to pit under green towards the end of the stage. Crew chief Alan Gustafson had Elliott remain on the track to earn pivotal stage points. He took the green-and-white checkered flag in fourth.

The team made the call for a two-stop pit strategy and opted to stay out during the stage break. Elliott lined up for the restart on the second row. Unfortunately, with his older tires, he couldn’t hold on to his track position. He was in 21st when he made his way to pit road for a scheduled stop for four tires and fuel on lap 28. As he was leaving pit road, the caution came out for debris, slowing the race. Elliott restarted in 26th on lap 32. With the end of stage two drawing near, teams on an alternate strategy made their way to pit road under green. Elliott remained on track, advancing to 11th to end stage two.

Staying out under the stage ending caution, Elliott took the green flag for the final stage from the seventh position on lap 45. He held strong inside the top 10 for several laps before cars on fresher tires started working their way by the No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet. Elliott was in 15th when teams started making green-flag pit stops on lap 54. Gustafson called Elliott in on lap 57 for four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment. Elliott got back out on the track deep in the field, but between his fresh tires and several teams still needing to pit, he was able to work his way up to 17th by lap 75. Unfortunately, as the stage went on, fresher tires began to prevail, and Elliott ultimately took the checkered flag in 26th.

Elliott remains second in the points standings with two races remaining in the regular season. He’s 42 markers behind Hendrick Motorsports teammate William Byron.

Start / Finish: 20 / 26
Points Standing / Total: 2nd / 770 pts. (-42)

Next Race: Saturday, August 16, Richmond Raceway
How to Watch or Listen: 7:30 p.m. ET on USA, MRN or SiriusXM

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