For most stock car drivers, entering the Xfinity or the Cup remains an elusive dream. But for those that make it, a win rarely pleases their way; and a Cup Series championship is a dream for a gifted few. While Chase Elliott has been lucky to win it, he is far from repeating the feat in the ongoing season. After missing out on six races due to a broken leg early in the campaign, the Hendrick Motorsports driver faces an uphill task to qualify for the playoffs. With the situation at hand, he feels nothing but sorry for his crew chief.

No one could doubt that Elliott is one of the finest talents in the competition right now. Despite his struggles this season, he has the potential to make an impressive comeback. However, he would need his team members behind him in order to achieve it as he certainly is counting on them to make it work.

Elliott shows empathy towards his crew chief as he speaks ahead of the race at Nashville Superspeedway

With 18 wins in 266 Cup Series races, Chase Elliott has proven his worth at a very young age. Having finished in the top-five four times, expectations are always high from the Hendrick Motorsports driver. Had it not been for his snowboarding injury this season, things could have easily been different for him.

The #9 driver currently sits in the 27th position with just 247 points to his name. It goes without saying that a win is the minimum requirement for him if he is to make it to the playoffs. While Elliott cannot be written off, there is no denying how tough the scenario already is.

Fortunately, with a crew chief like Alan Gustafson associated with him, the 27-year-old could certainly be more confident. In fact, Elliott spoke quite highly of him recently building up to the race in Tennessee on Sunday. Speaking to the press, he said, “He’s [Gustafson] a top-notch guy, first and foremost, and he’s a good leader. He’s somebody that has enough experience to be able to plug someone into his system.”

The HMS driver was quick to bring about the unique situation they are in because of him missing out on races earlier. He even admitted how Gustafson must be in a fix. Elliott said, “Yeah, I mean obviously he’s had a challenge and I’ve put him in that situation more this year than I would have liked to, for sure.”

Having said that, he has the utmost belief that they could come out with shining colors this season. He adds, “I think he’s led our team really well through a tough situation. Obviously, still a lot of the season left and a lot of opportunity to get things going like we want to, but I think he’s done a great job, as I’ve always thought about him.”

With Gustafson beside him, it comes as no surprise why Elliott felt optimistic about the challenge ahead in the remaining 10 races.

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Chase Elliott remains positive about his playoff chances ahead of the Nashville Superspeedway race

It is important to note that it is not just Chase Elliott alone who will be fighting for a place in the playoffs. However, he will have an upper hand given how well the HMS team cars have performed this season. Elliott spoke in detail about how this could help them in the remaining 10 races in the same press conference.

He said, “I think our team has been really, really strong for the majority of the season. I think back to some of the races that I’ve been part of – a lot of those races I feel like our race team has been better than I have done for them throughout the year. If I can bring to the table what they’ve been bringing to the table – on pit road, race strategy, and things – I think we’d be in really, really good shape.

“I feel like I’ve very capable of doing that – just putting the right pieces of the puzzle together at the right now and just getting in a bit of rhythm.” With Elliott registering a win at Nashville last year, do you think he could manage to repeat the feat again this year? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

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