While Chase Elliott says “we really deserved to be knocked out” of the playoffs after his crash last weekend at Bristol, the former champion notes that this second chance gives he and his team the opportunity to excel, beginning with Sunday’s race at New Hampshire (2 p.m. ET on USA Network).
Elliott made his comments Wednesday on “Sirius Speedway” on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
Elliott faced the threat of elimination after he crashed in last weekend’s race at Bristol when he tried to move from the top lane to the bottom.
“I just felt the urgency to get to the bottom and try to do what I could to save some tire,” Elliott said on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. “ … It was a high risk, but I felt like it was a risk that I needed to try to take at that point in time in my head. Unfortunately, didn’t work out.”
Elliott came down the track in front of John Hunter Nemechek and the contact with Nemechek’s car sent Elliott into the wall and out of the race. Elliott finished 38th — his sixth finish outside the top 10 in the last eight races.
Elliott was not going to lose enough points to be passed by teammate Alex Bowman, the first driver below the cutline, but Bowman ran toward the front and a win would have given him a spot in the next round and possibly eliminate Elliott.
“At that time, I thought our night, I thought our season was over, to be honest,” Elliott said on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. “I didn’t have a good grasp on where some of the other competitors below the cutline were running.
“Had a brief conversation with (crew chief) Alan (Gustafson) right when I got out of the car. I was like, ‘Man is that going to knock us out?’ He said, ‘Yeah, I think so.’ At that point, obviously, we’re just bummed.
“It took some time to kind of realize the situation and what it was going to take to knock us out. I got to watch it on TV with everybody else. It wasn’t the most pleasant hour and a half or so of my life watching, but it worked out, fortunately. Got really lucky with that, no question.”
Ryan Blaney’s 4-year-old nephew provided an unexpected pep talk in the final stage at Bristol.
Elliott advanced to the first round despite the result at Bristol and a 17th-place finish at Darlington. He was third at Gateway, providing the cushion he needed to advance to the next round.
New Hampshire has not been the best track for Elliott and Hendrick Motorsports. The organization last won at New Hampshire in July 2012. Elliott has only three top-10 finishes in 11 Cup start at the 1-mile track in the Northeast.
“I just feel like, yeah, you’re kind of in a spot where, ‘Man, we really didn’t deserve to be here based on the week before, let’s go and make the very most of it,’” he said on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
“I just feel like there’s nothing to lose for us at this point. We’ve got to make something happen, get some life and get our heads down and just grind it out these next three weeks.
“It’s kind of been one of those years in general, just trying, some of those days taking what was there. I was really encouraged by our Gateway, to be frank, and I thought there was a lot of really good stuff that went on there throughout the course of the event.
“I think New Hampshire has some similarities to Gateway, so I’m looking forward to see how we stack up in that regard.”
