“I believe in this sport, if you’re doing all those right things, that’s something to be proud of, ” said Chase Elliott. Indeed, there are a lot of things that Elliott can be proud of. There was a storm of misgivings surrounding the Hendrick Motorsports star, especially due to his 44-race winless skid. Elliott’s name even popped up in fans’ ‘hot seat’ speculation. Now, however, the 7-time Most Popular Driver has the top voices of NASCAR supporting him.

Last weekend, Chase Elliott clinched a dramatic victory at the Quaker State 400 race. The 1.54-mile high-banked track of Atlanta featured chaotic wrecks that engulfed 23 cars, 12 of which could not continue. Elliott dodged that carnage to snap his winless streak and also restore faith in his speed.

Chase Elliott is drawing optimism

Well, that win was a long time coming. Chase Elliott won his previous Cup Series victory in Texas back in April 2024, but the consistency has not stopped. Last year, he accumulated 19 top tens and 11 top fives, finishing 7th in the championship standings with an average finish of 11.72. The same streak has continued into 2025, as Elliott is yet to finish a race outside the top 20!

This impeccable record, along with his Atlanta victory, led Elliott to be 2nd in the 2025 Cup Series standings. The last time Elliott dominated the championship headlines was in 2020. After that, numerous mishaps like his 2023 snowboarding accident or missing the playoffs happened. Now, the glimmer of 2020 is back. At least that is what NASCAR journalist Bob Pockrass fervently believes.

The expert merely looked at the available evidence to justify his stance. Elliott has been strong on diverse racetracks, as Pockrass pointed out on the Beating and Banging YouTube show: “Well, I mean, first off, he’s second in the points, right? So if you’re second in the points, you should be considered a contender. I’m not saying that he’s going to make the Final Four. But what I like about Chase Elliot is that he’s been running well in the last few weeks. He ran well at Mexico City, so he’s going to be good at road courses. I think he was good at Pocono, he was good on the drafting track of Atlanta.”

Chase Elliott finished 3rd at the road course of Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez and went on to clinch another top five at Pocono, an oval track. Then, as we saw, he sparkled at the drafting track of Atlanta. This history of dominance lays out a bright blueprint for Elliott. Up next, we have road courses at Chicago and Sonoma, where Elliott has been in contention in the past.

Road courses are the #9’s bread and butter. He made his mark on NASCAR’s biggest stage as a ‘road course king’ and for good measure. He has 7 road course wins in his Cup Series career, including four in a row across 2019 and 2020, winning twice at the Charlotte ROVAL, and one a piece at Watkins Glen and the Daytona Road Course. However, he is winless on road courses in the Next-Gen era, but consistently maintained top-5 and top-10 speed, while being versatile and winning at other tracks. Pockrass feels this sets him up perfectly for the playoffs.

Bob Pockrass continued, “When you look at the playoffs, and you have a road course there to finish the second round in Charlotte, and you have a drafting track at Talladega in the semi-final round. Like, why not? Why wouldn’t you consider him somebody you’re going to have to beat to make the championship four?”

Clearly, Chase Elliott makes a strong case for a second championship title. However, the road is steep and rocky, although his team’s camaraderie may pull through.

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Faith and hard work are good partners

Although Bob Pockrass believes in Chase Elliott’s potential, not many people do. After the action-packed race unfolded at EchoPark Speedway, FanDuels Sportsbook released its updated betting lines. It estimated which drivers are most likely to win a championship this season. Kyle Larson reigns supreme in that estimation, followed by Christopher Bell, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, and William Byron. Chase Elliott occupies the 6th place – quite a marginal estimation compared to Pockrass’ confidence in him.

Nevertheless, this is just a prediction model. Elliott has been known to topple harsh obstacles in the past, especially with the help of his team. When he missed races due to an injury, landed a suspension, and missed the playoffs in 2023, his No. 9 HMS team stuck with him. That steadfast loyalty and hard work of the team pushed Chase Elliott to make a comeback in 2024. Similarly, Elliott emphasized how important his team’s efforts are after the Atlanta win.

Elliott said, “For me, it’s just a really good reminder that we have a really good team. I really do believe that. We have a really good team behind the wall, over the wall, and before we get to the racetrack each week. All that stuff ends up making a difference. Look, I understand the points and the wins and what it means. But there are times you can get into the playoffs, and you might get caught up in a wreck or have a bad day. And for you to be able to really lean on your team and say, “Hey, let’s just dig a top-20 out of this” — that can be important.”

We cannot predict the future with certainty,  but for now, we are sure that Chase Elliott’s optimism is not regulated by any misgivings. Let us wait and see how he performs in the rest of the season.