Hooters can finally breathe a sigh of relief! After a concerning 42-race winless streak, Chase Elliott finally clinched a Cup race at Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday. After a thrilling battle that stretched into double overtime, NASCAR’s most popular driver battled through multiple restarts, finally snatching away the win from the likes of Ross Chastain, Brad Keselowski, and Denny Hamlin.

However, apart from ending his winless streak, the Hendrick Motorsports driver also managed to break a 31-year-old curse with his Texas victory. A curse that has been looming long over Hooters-sponsored drivers for over three decades.

Chase Elliott breaks a 31-year-old curse

It’s interesting to see that Chase Elliott’s Texas victory marks the end of a peculiar curse. As NASCAR writer nascarman shared on X, Elliott’s #9 is the first car with primary sponsorship from Hooters since Alan Kulwicki’s win at Pocono in 1992. This breaks a 31-year dry spell for Hooter-sponsored charters.

Alan Kuluwicki, along with two Hooters executives lost his life in a plane crash on April 1, 1993. And as eerie as it sounds, since then, no driver with the restaurant chain as their primary sponsor had been able to enter the victory lane. That is until Elliott decided to bring out the big guns on Sunday!

While talking about the special significance of his win, even Elliott himself shared that he has been quite happy with his partnership. Furthermore, the driver even paid his respects to the deceased driver Alan Kulwicki, who beat Elliott’s father back in 1992. Talking about it, he shared, “Hooters has been a great partner for years. It’s been a dream to pay tribute to Alan Kulwicki with a Polish victory lap in the Hooters colors. That’s something I’ve wanted to do for a long time.”

Apart from this, the Texas victory also marks Elliott’s first win of the 2024 season. A spectacle for fans, the race was dramatic with a whopping 16 cautions that pushed it to a double overtime.

Chase Elliott’s Texas Win – a dramatic finish

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Chase Elliott’s victory wasn’t easy. Initially, his HMS teammate Kyle Larson dominated the race, securing the Stage 1 win, while Elliott started at the back of the pack. But soon, Larson suffered a mechanical issue, while Elliott battled his way to the front on the penultimate lap after a restart, leaving Ross Chastain behind.

However, drama unfolded on the final lap when Ross Chastain made contact with William Byron. This sent Chastain spinning, making things easier for the #9 driver. Apart from Elliott and Chastain, Denny Hamlin was also in contention for the checkered flag. However, a late-race crash triggered an overtime and Elliott capitalized on the opportunity.

The win is definitely a significant comeback for Elliott. After struggling with his new car, it looks like the #9 driver has finally got the hang of it. Moreover, it was also the fifth win for HMS this season, reinstating its winningest position in NASCAR history with 306 wins.