Home

NASCAR

NASCAR Playoffs: Chase Elliott Set a Personal Record of the Most Laps Led in a Single Season

Published 09/08/2020, 10:15 AM EDT

Follow Us

Chase Elliott did not enjoy the best of runs at the Darlington Raceway after having finished in 20th place. However, he can take some comfort in the fact that he set a personal record at the track. As it turns out, Elliott has now led a grand total of 644 laps in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season.

On Sunday, the Hendrick Motorsports driver looked like he had a shoe in for the win. Unfortunately, he got caught in a wreck while battling for the lead. Apparently, this is the second time that he has squandered a golden opportunity and crashed out.

https://www.facebook.com/NASCARFirstAlert/posts/2637453119827373

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

With 15 laps left on the board, Martin Truex Jr got an excellent run on Elliott and dove down the inside of turn one. Sadly, their cars touched, and both drivers proceeded to hit the wall hard.

Both drivers tumbled down the order like stones, and Chase Elliott eventually finished in 20th place. It was quite gutting, especially since Elliott started from the pole position. He got a good getaway at the start and led most of the first stage.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

How did the race pan out for Chase Elliott?

Sometime during the race, the Hendrick Motorsports driver survived a brush with the wall and a poor pit stop. Since then, he was in catch-up mode as he tried to regain track position.

Luckily, a well-timed caution ensured that Elliott took the last restart in the lead. However, Martin Truex Jr was breathing down his neck. Things eventually culminated in their unfortunate incident and ruined their chances of a win, while a gleeful Kevin Harvick capitalized.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

Exclusive Invite for NASCAR Community

EssentiallySports gives you the power to decide who drives the #14 on 20th April

What really was a hit below the belt was the fact that Chase Elliott led a total of 114 laps and eventually reached his tally of 644 lead laps. Obviously, this made the pain of the loss hurt him, and Truex Jr even more. It also put to an end, Truex Jr’s eight-race Top-5 streak.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE :

Written by:

Dhruv George

14,311Articles

One take at a time

Dhruv George is a senior Formula One and NASCAR analyst for EssentiallySports, having authored nearly 12000 articles spanning different sports like F1, NASCAR, Tennis, NFL, and eSports. He graduated with a PG Diploma in Journalism from the Xavier Institute of Communications. Dhruv has also conducted interviews with F1 driver Pierre Gasly and Moto2 rider Tony Arbolino.
Show More>