Chase Elliott keeps eye on ‘ultimate prize’ as playoffs’ Round of 8 hits Homestead
Chase Elliott is one of two former NASCAR Cup Series champions whose title hopes are still intact in this most unpredictable season.
The other is Joey Logano, who claimed his second Cup crown with a win last weekend at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
The time and opportunities for Elliott to join Logano in Championship 4 are starting to wane,
with two races remaining before elimination arrives for four of the remaining eight drivers.
The entire season's goal remains in clear focus for the 2020 champion, whose aspirations to become a two-time champion are within reach.
"I'd love to add to that, right," Elliott said in a Zoom call Wednesday morning.
“I mean, look, that's the goal every year for all of us, is to go out there and get that ultimate award.
And we set out to do that every season. That's what we started our year hoping to win.
So it’s a fight, it’s a fight, it certainly doesn’t get any easier.”
The next phase of that routine begins this weekend with Sunday's Dixie Vodka 400 (2:30 pm ET, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM) at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
It's the middle event in Round 8 of three races, followed by an October 30 date at Martinsville Speedway to set the final four for the November 6 finale in Phoenix.
Elliott has some credibility as a favorite to reach Championship 4 for the third straight year,
claiming a record five series wins and leading his playoff points tally as the regular season champion.
The Hendrick Motorsports ace is keen to bounce back from 21st in Las Vegas,
re-establishing his position in what has been a fickle season for the entire field with the debut of the Next Gen car.
"Lots of new challenges this year, and I don't think anyone has been immune to inconsistency with this car over the course of the season," said Elliott.
“This thing doesn't care who you are or what's going on. You can be humiliated very quickly.
And then, on the other hand, we were lucky to have had a couple of good weeks as well. So we would love to see that inconsistency improve a little bit,
speaking personally from our team side, we want to be better every week, not be as unpredictable as we've been,
and I think that's where our head is right now is just trying to do that a little bit. best.
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