The countdown to playoffs is inching close to an end. With the deadline day arriving, all eyes shift towards Chase Elliott, whose season has gone off-road so far. NASCAR’s most popular driver of the last five years not competing in the playoffs is a weird sight to describe. While his fans hold on to some hope for Daytona, the task at hand seems like an arduous one.

Facing a similar situation is his teammate Alex Bowman who has also struggled with injuries and wrecks this season. On the other hand, Kyle Larson and William Byron are sitting comfortably in the upper half of the top 16, strategizing their playoff runs. When asked about the precarious situation of his teammate, he elaborates on the obstacles that stand in Elliott’s road to the playoffs.

Kyle Larson believes drivers might take the safer road to stay alive for a chance at playoffs

“I think drivers close to the cutoff have just been a little more like…” states Larson. Speaking to media personnel in a pre-race press conference before The Glen, his attention was drawn toward the playoff battle by the journalists. Elliott’s situation has been a hot topic in the community for long. He has come quite close to pointing his way into the playoffs, but that course of events has never come to fruition.

Larson emphasizes on the increased urgency on the track due to the playoffs, as he says, “I think you know the points were within reach there for a little while for a lot of teams that were on the cutoff. So I think they weren’t really in their minds, in must-win situations. So I think if anything, there was maybe some less aggression just because they were trying to just maximize their day as far as gaining points.”

“Maybe you’ll see that change here the next couple races but even Daytona, I feel like every year that it’s been the cutoff race before the playoffs.”

One thing that Elliott needs to regain is the ability to lay the finishing touch to a race. At Chicago, despite being a frontrunner for a good amount of time, he was chased down by Shane van Gisbergen. Last to last Sunday, at the Indy Road Course, Elliott failed to capitalize on the opening left by Daniel Suarez to double down on Michael McDowell, who led an incredible 54 laps to grab the win. Elliott has had the goal in sight but fell short when it mattered the most.

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Larson says the hunger to win in other drivers is going to be a challenge for Chase Elliott

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“‘Man it’s gonna be crazy, it’s gonna be intense,’ continues the 30-year-old. Larson has also experienced a slight dip in form after taking the season by storm with dominant performances earlier. The All-Star winner has not struggled for playoff points after winning early, but he does understand a thing or two about the desperation that will be showing on the track.

“You know all these guys are gonna be going for it and those guys only shot of making the playoffs is to win and you can’t win if you’re crashed. So typically they all just ride around until you know, the end of the race. “

“They try and get up there and usually don’t make it happen but… or the whole field wipes out and you know the #3 squeaks by and gets a win. Honestly, I feel like this point of the year gets a little less aggressive maybe if you see it come down to late-race restart or something that’s when you see the aggression pick up. But from start to finish of a race, I think it’s less aggressive.”

On being asked if he could be of any help to Chase, to aid his pursuit of the much-anticipated qualification, he adds, “I don’t know. You don’t really know how the race is gonna play out but yeah obviously if there is room to help you know I’m more than willing to do what I can to try and benefit their race without doing something egregious.”

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It is sort of tough and unreasonable to ask Larson to be of any help to Elliott. Considering the urgency at a later stage of the season, the unqualified drivers will be amped up to the core to take their chances. If anything, drivers like Kevin Harvick and Brad Keselowski, who although are above the cut-off line and in the top 10 positions, are yet to find a win and wouldn’t want to miss out either. Overall, the grid has been prepared quite tough and Chase Elliott will face immense resistance as he tries to power through.