How Chase Elliott Can Still Make the NASCAR Cup Playoffs

For Chase Elliott, his path to a NASCAR Cup playoff berth is quite simple—win.

The broken left leg that sidelined Elliott for six weeks has left him mired 32nd in driver points with no hope of overcoming the deficit before the playoffs begin at Darlington, S.C., on Labor Day weekend. Many drivers would be in panic mode or lying awake at night due to the intense pressure of being so far outside the top 16 in points, but not the soft-spoken Elliott.

“I’m kind of excited about the challenge,” Elliott said calmly. “It’s very simple. It’s pretty straightforward in what we need to go do. It’s a different feeling than what it’s been, but we’re really embracing it as a group.

“It’s kind of unique and kind of fun. You win and you’re in or you don’t, and you fail. So, I kind of like it.”

Elliott admits he hates that he put his Hendrick Motorsports team in this position because he believes they are strong enough to contend for the championship. However, he doesn’t cite that as his primary motivation for seeking a victory.

“We all want to win as a group,” Elliott said. “It’s not because of my absence that we want to win anymore than we already did before.”

Elliott suffered his broken leg while snowboarding in Colorado prior to the season’s third race in Las Vegas. After the first two races, Elliott was 14th in the driver standings. However, he didn’t receive any driver points while he was absent. Those went to Josh Berry and Jordan Taylor who substituted for Elliott. The No. 9 Chevrolet continued to receive owner points during the time Elliott was sidelined. That car is now 21st in owner points.