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Chase Elliott Reveals the X-Factor Instrumental for His Inevitable Comeback After Historic Slump

Published 04/17/2024, 11:07 PM EDT

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Luck finally shines in favor of fan-favorite Chase Elliott as he breaks the 42-winless streak. His victory at the Texas Motor Speedway saw Elliott make his comeback after 18 months since his win at the Talladega Superspeedway. After missing the playoffs in 2023 without a victory, Elliott’s win at Texas marked a turning point, but what made it possible?

With this, Elliott is just behind Kyle Larson and Denny Hamlin in terms of the record for most consecutive victories at different tracks in the modern era. Speaking of his most-awaited victory, Chase Elliott revealed what made it possible for him to clinch the Cup at Texas.

“Everything was working,” said Chase Elliott, crediting Gustafon and team for his Texas win

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Chase Elliott’s first win on a 1.5-mile track in NextGen cars, also marked the third win for Hendrick Motorsports in 2024. However, Elliott’s race was no walk in the park. The HMS driver battled through multiple restarts and double overtime. As the laps wound down, Elliot’s performance intensified, leading him to cross the finish line under the track-record-matching 16th caution.

After this winning race in Texas, Chase Elliott appeared to lend his opinion for an interview with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Ch. 90). The interview was uploaded on Twitter with the caption, Sunday’s win @TXMotorSpeedway was an all around team victory for @chaseelliott and the @Hendrick9Team. Everything’s got to be working to win those races.” 

Chase Elliott said that it was more teamwork that led to his 2024 NASCAR Cup victory. “The Picker who has been, I mean, they had been just killing it all year, been doing a really, really good job,” he said. “The road crew guys are a huge part of it, putting in a lot of effort and a lot of hours throughout the week to make sure our cars are prepped and all the little fine little details are exactly the way they need to be.”

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Speaking of his crew chief, Alan Arthur Gustafson, Elliot added, “And I thought Alan called it great race. You know, we were aggressive. We need to be just everything. Everything was working. And to be honest with you, everything’s got to be working to, to win those races. They’re just really hard to win, as you know. So, yeah, really fun to be a part of. I feel like we have a really, really solid group right now,” he continued in appreciation of the contribution of his crew members, whom he considers helped him win.

Chase Elliott is back in form after a career slump

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What caused the career slump in the first place? The 18-month-long winless streak threw the HMS driver to a low that nobody could expect from a driver of his caliber. Lack of consistent performances and an injury later in 2023, kept Elliott out of the competition for quite a while. Elliott’s surgery, followed by a broken leg in 2023, kept him out of the race for six weeks. This surgery for a fractured tibia due to a snowboarding accident early in the season further deteriorated his form in the game.

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This was followed by a shoulder injury earlier this year. However, this time Chase Elliott emerged more determined to win. Overcoming his physical challenges, Chase Elliott is reluctant to blame it on the injury, as he said, “I definitely feel like we have improved throughout the year. Looking back on it, I don’t think being out and my injury is the reason for that. As I learn more about my season and myself and how things have unfolded, I feel like my struggles and the things I’ve fought through this year I was starting to fight through last year, too.”

Chase Elliott’s recent victory thereby raised hopes for his place among the best drivers in NASCAR. Stay tuned for more updates on Chase Elliott.

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Written by:

Mamata Mukherjee

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Mamata Mukherjee is a NASCAR Writer at EssentiallySports. Combining her love for writing and motorsports she has created some interesting and in-depth stories on drivers like Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Joining ES with 3 years of experience in the field of writing, Mamata feels right at home in her role as a NASCAR Journalist.
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Edited by:

Shivali Nathta