Chase Elliott‘s attitude toward Las Vegas was defeatist from the beginning. Is it possible that the racer is burying himself and in [Homestead-Miami Speedway] we should expect the continuation of bad races? – @sanchellito, Twitter
The difference between this year’s regular season Elliott and playoff Elliott could not be more jarring.
He walked away with the regular season title, not just because a series-high four wins, but also because of ultra consistency. Elliott amassed 10 top fives and 17 top 10s in the regular season, and at one point, he had a streak of five consecutive top-two finishes.
But once the playoffs started, consistency went out the window. Elliott has two top 10s in the seven playoff races so far.
Granted, those two top 10s were a second at Bristol Motor Speedway and a win at Talladega Superspeedway. He also would’ve backed that Talladega win up with a win the following week at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL had a caution for a sponsor board not erased his lead. He spun on the ensuing restart after a bad block on Tyler Reddick and was relegated to 20th.
Elliott had at least been competitive in majority of the playoff races even if the results didn’t show it. And the playoff points he had earned had given him enough of a cushion to safely advance.
That was the case until this past week at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where Elliott qualified 20th, didn’t get any stage points and finished 21st. The large points cushion he entered with shrunk to a measly 17-point lead over Hendrick Motorsports teammate William Byron, who holds the first spot below the cut line. Denny Hamlin is fourth in points between the two, 11 points behind Elliott.
It’s entirely possible both Hamlin and Byron overtake Elliott based on current momentum. I mentioned Elliott hasn’t been as consistent since the playoffs started. Well, Byron’s worst finish is 16th and Hamlin only has one finish outside the top 10 since the playoffs started. Not to mention, who is the most recent winner at both Homestead-Miami Speedway and Martinsville Speedway? Byron.
So it’s understandable if Elliott did sound like a defeatist this past weekend, given the recent results and the slow speed of the No. 9 at Vegas. But then again, doesn’t Elliott kind of always sound down on himself when he doesn’t win? And it usually has no bearing on the future, as he can go pop off a win the following week.
So don’t worry, Elliott fans, it’s not time to sound the…
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