DOVER, DE – SEPTEMBER 30: Chase Elliott, driver of the #24 Mountain Dew Chevrolet, speaks with the media prior to practice for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Citizen Solider 400 at Dover International Speedway on September 30, 2016 in Dover, Delaware. Photo by Sean Gardner/NASCAR via Getty Images

As a Sunoco rookie in his first Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, Chase Elliott has found the first two playoff races surprisingly “normal.”

Elliott comes to the elimination at Dover tied for ninth in the standings, 16 points ahead of Jamie McMurray and Austin Dillon, the first two drivers below the cut line.

But Elliott expects that, as the rounds of the Chase progress, the intensity will ratchet up significantly. Continue reading →