Chase Elliott’s Failure to Make the Playoffs at Daytona Could Mark the Beginning of His End

Can Chase Elliott have a turnaround at Daytona?

At present, this is one of the most talked-about subjects in the NASCAR community. A gut-wrenching finish at Watkins Glen has only added fuel to the fire that has been raging for a long time. With how his season has turned out so far, even the 2020 champion’s fans have started to voice their doubts over his qualification for the playoffs.

A majority of followers of the sport consider the task at hand to be impossible. Especially since he failed to make the most of his chances in something he’s specialized in winning at road courses. However, the question of the hour is: what could his faltering to make the playoffs imply for the 27-year-old’s future in the Cup Series?

The obstacles that stand in front of Chase Elliott at Daytona

One of the biggest challenges for Chase Elliott will be trying to find a treaty with Alex Bowman, who will be looking to make the occasion count as much as him, if not more. Although superspeedway races can be tricky, the secret to winning them lies in teamwork. However, it will be a problematic crossroads as two Hendrick Motorsports drivers have shown their caliber in the past to win races and are yet to qualify.

On the other hand, Chase Elliott had to bear a vicious blunder by his pit crew at The Glen with a fuel miscalculation. If not for that mistake, we might have seen Elliott have a better finish, if not win, on Sunday. The two road courses in Indianapolis and Watkins Glen couldn’t have come Elliott’s way at a better time. Yet he failed to capitalize on the chances, and now we see him struggling for a win again.

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Well, drivers can always count on racking up consistent points to hope for a chance, if not with wins. Veterans like Brad Keselowski and Kevin Harvick have adopted a similar method and find themselves in far more comfortable positions as well.

One could argue that factors like a suspension and missing races with a tibia injury early on in the season were at work here, which would indeed be true. But despite getting a waiver, Elliott failed to make it count despite coming agonizingly close at times like Chicago and Indianapolis.

Drivers in the bubble battle will also be hot on Elliott’s heels in the hope of sneaking into the final 16. All the signs point towards an open-ended race that could be very hard to predict. But not being able to watch NASCAR’s most popular driver of the last five years will be a weird development to witness and could even be the reason for a possible decline.

Could it be the end of Elliott’s stellar run in the Cup Series?

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Team owner Rick Hendrick will find it hard to digest that two of his insanely talented drivers will have to battle it out at Daytona. Allocating resources toward the cars has also been a dilemma for the team, and their VC, HMS legend Jeff Gordon, had previously thrown hints at amplifying the cause of their unqualified drivers if things looked to go south.

This exact confusion within the team can also be an indication of a loss of faith in their Golden Boy. In William Byron, the team has a gem of a driver who has been one of the standout performers of the season with a total of 5 wins and the highest playoff points in the division. Everything about the North Carolina speedster suggests that he is ready to fill the void that has been left by the enigmatic Gordon.

The second former champion on their roster, Kyle Larson is one of the fastest drivers in the competition and has reminded the world of his abilities this season with dominating wins. With experience in winning the championship, he could also take the mantle to being the next leader of the winningest team in Cup Series.

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The presence of such options within their ranks could mean a decrease in importance for Chase Elliott. Ifs and buts are not really a measure of outcomes in NASCAR, however, if Chase manages to win at Daytona, it could benefit him in redeeming his status as a potential title-contender. To stay level-headed and drive to the best of his talents will be key to making a dream come true, unless something as unfortunate as last weekend’s blunder haunts them again.