As the twilight settled on the track of Phoenix, the track still smelled of burned tires. The final Cup Series race of the season witnessed history being created once again. It was the first time a driver, ineligible for the championship, won the final race since NASCAR introduced the elimination-style format. As a result, the ‘melon man,’ Ross Chastain was seen performing his customary act of bursting open a watermelon.

On the other hand, Team Penske swept a second consecutive championship, as Ryan Blaney was crowned as the new champion. The jubilation and elation were underway on the victory lane, as fellow drivers and friends embraced the new champion on his achievement. Amongst the gleeful faces was one of the closest friends of Ryan Blaney and another former Cup Series champion, Chase Elliott.

While Chase Elliott’s friend and Team Penske’s driver had entered the victory lane thrice in the 2023 season only to cap off the season by winning the championship, Elliott, himself on the other hand, had failed to enter the victory lane altogether. To state the brutal truth, the season was utterly dismal for the golden boy of NASCAR. With a series of mishaps that haunted the driver’s performance, Chase Elliott, from occupying a hallowed position, had come crashing down to the abyss.

However, with all said and done, can this bitter experience be commented on as a learning curve for the former champion? Will this be the lesson that Elliott will carry forward to the next season?

Chase Elliott’s broken tibia had set the tone for his 2023 season

As a driver, Chase Elliott has always tasted victory. The driver in his short span as a Cup Series driver has collected numerous feathers and built an impressive resume, enough to be termed as one of the top 75 drivers of NASCAR. However, as harsh reality strikes, one cannot be perpetually riding the high on success, and this remained true for Chase Elliott as well. 

While there have been a plethora of reasons that could be asserted for the abysmal performance of the #9 Chevrolet driver, there can be no denying the fact that the driver lacked the momentum and the impetus in order to seize a berth in the playoffs. The driver, for the first time since his graduation to the Cup Series, missed the opportunity of making it to the playoffs. 

Amongst a galore of reasons that led to the downfall of the reasons, the foremost being the snowboarding incident. The driver had fractured his left tibia and underwent a three-hour surgery. As a result, the driver was sidelined from the series and missed six races, including his home race at Atlanta, where he had seized a victory back in 2022.

Watch this Story: Chase Elliott’s Season: A ‘What If’ Scenario

However, the driver and his team, Hendrick Motorsports, had kept their hopes up, with the faith that Elliott would be able to turn the tables and earn a victory in the remaining races. Jeff Andrews, the general manager of HMS had stated, “We’re going to race a long time together with Chase Elliott and we’re going to win a lot more races together.”

“Certainly, there’s a little bit of a setback, and obviously Chase is very disappointed. The most important thing is Chase’s health, and we’ll have a suit ready for him when he’s healthy and ready to get back in a race car.”

The #9 Chevrolet driver failing to crack the playoffs, leaves NASCAR speculating

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Nevertheless, Elliott failed to make any significant leap after returning from his injury. Owing to this, there were speculations that the team boss Mr. H might bar his drivers from competing in other co-curricular activities, as it might hamper the performance of the drivers and could cause a setback for the organization.  

In addition, Elliott had also stated blatantly that he wouldn’t be changing his outlook towards his extra-curricular activities. As a result, this led to the cropping up of whether this decision seemed to be befitting of a driver and whether Elliott should be prioritizing his racing commitments over anything else. 

While there have been instances where drivers showed signs of rebound after suffering serious injuries. Chase Elliott, on the contrary, stumbled to clinch a respectable position and eventually missed out on the playoffs for the first time in his Cup Series career. Moreover, to add to his already dismal year was the one-race suspension of the driver, after he rear-hooked Denny Hamlin.

Moreover, the #9 Chevrolet driver failed to earn satisfactory results on the road courses, where Elliott had remained dominant throughout his career. He failed to live up to the name of ‘King of Road Courses’ and was usurped by Tyler Reddick and Daniel Suarez. Moreover, a miscommunication regarding the fuel limitations on the track of Watkins Glen led to the final blow to the driver’s playoff hopes.

Is there light at the end of the tunnel for Chase Elliott in the upcoming season?

Nevertheless, as the winless season finally comes to a culmination with the race at Phoenix, the question that still remains unanswered is whether the Most Popular Driver of NASCAR has learned his lessons as the preparations begin for the next season.

Well, the answer is obviously a yes. Despite his winless streak and failing to make it to the playoffs, the driver has delivered a few impressive results, worthy of mentioning. Elliott has collected the seventh-most points in the playoffs, despite not notching a single top-5 finish. Moreover, if the instance of Joe Gibbs Racing driver Martin Truex Jr is taken into account, then Chase Elliott hopes to turn the ill tidings. 

The 2017 Cup Series champion Truex Jr, for the first time since 2014, had missed the playoffs in the last season after going winless. However, in the 2023 season, the driver raced in a league of his own and won the regular season championship. Nevertheless, learning the lesson the hard way, Elliott has surely grounded himself and is ready to take one step at a time in the upcoming season. 

This was apparent in his pre-race interview at Phoenix. On being asked whether he was humbled or not, Elliott asserted, “I’ve been humbled a lot in my career. so, no, I don’t think that’s necessarily a new lesson. I knew this stuff was hard long before now I guess. I think the things that we started struggling with last year continued on to this year and it was really a reflection of where we left off the season last year unfortunately, we just never, you know, never figured some of the things out and got better so.”

Read More: Richard Childress Puts His Stars Forward as the Fight for Chase Elliott’s Throne Begins

Having said and witnessing the resilience of the driver, one is surely reminded of the lines by Frank Sinatara, “And I know one thing/Each time I find myself/ Flat on my face/ I pick myself up and get/ Back in the race.” With the hopes of coming back stronger next year, it will be a treat for the eyes to see what the #9 driver and his team have in store.