NASCAR Bill Elliott

49 posts

Rookie Sensation Elliott Needs Win at Talladega

NASCAR NASCAR Wire Service Sprint Cup Series Track News
Photo - Patrick Smith/Getty Images
Photo – Patrick Smith/Getty Images

Positioned last on the Chase Grid, a hefty 25 points below the cutoff line in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, Chase Elliott needs a win in the worst way.

The problem: He’s never visited Victory Lane in a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.

To advance in his quest for the championship, Elliott virtually must earn his first win in Sunday’s Hellmann’s 500 at Talladega Superspeedway at 2 pm  ET on NBCSN. The Sunoco Rookie of the Year frontrunner finished fifth from the pole at the 2.66-mile behemoth in his lone start there in May. Although Elliott hasn’t won a race, he’s shown he’s a contender every week and had near misses in both Michigan races and at Pocono in June. Continue reading →

Chase Elliott Reflects on Rookie Sprint Cup Season before Crucial Mid-Way Point in The Chase

NASCAR NASCAR Wire Service Sprint Cup Series Track News
Photo - Sarah Crabill/Getty Images
Photo – Sarah Crabill/Getty Images

All eyes were on rookie NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver, Chase Elliott, before he ever gripped the wheel of the famed No. 24 Chevrolet this season. As the son of NASCAR Hall of Famer Bill Elliott and the successor of four-time champion Jeff Gordon at Hendrick Motorsports in the 24, the shadows of past racing legends and fan expectations loomed for the young talent even during his reign as the 2014 NASCAR XFINITY Series champion.

The younger Elliott grew up racing go-karts and late models while watching his father compete in NASCAR-sanctioned events long after his 1988 championship. But for the 20-year-old Dawsonville, Georgia, native, the realization that the baton had officially been passed didn’t set in until he headed to Daytona International Speedway in early 2016. Continue reading →

Talladega’s a Special Place for Ford and the Wood Brothers

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Track News
Ryan Blaney, driver of the #21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford, practices for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway on May 1, 2015 Photo - Matt Sullivan/Getty Images
Ryan Blaney, driver of the #21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford, practices for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway on May 1, 2015
Photo – Matt Sullivan/Getty Images

Ford Motor Company in general, and the Wood Brothers in particular, have had some glorious Sunday afternoons at Talladega Superspeedway through the years.

In the early years of the track that opened in 1969, the Wood Brothers won five races from the spring of 1971, when Donnie Allison drove the iconic No. 21 to victory at his home track, until the fall of 1979, when another Alabama driver, the late Neil Bonnett, scored the victory.

In between were three consecutive wins in the spring race by David Pearson, from 1972-1974. Continue reading →

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Folds of Honor Quik Trip 500 at Atlanta Preview

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Track News

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NASCAR Sprint Cup Series

Next Race: Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500

The Place: Atlanta Motor Speedway

The Date: Sunday, Feb. 28

The Time: 1 p.m. ET

TV: FOX, 12:30 p.m. ET

Radio: PRN, SiriusXM Ch. 90

Distance: 500.5 miles (325 laps)

 

Daytona Drama: Hamlin Wins Great American Race by Closest Margin in its History

Denny Hamlin provided viewers more drama in the closing moments of the Daytona 500 than fans have seen in the race’s history. Literally and statistically.

The No. 11 Toyota driver made a move from his fourth position with less than two laps remaining in Sunday’s Daytona 500, dove between Matt Kenseth and Martin Truex Jr., then beat Truex to the start/finish line by 0.010 seconds – the closest margin of victory (MOV) in the history of The Great American Race.

Read – Joe Gibbs Racing Pumped for Atlanta Motor Speedway

Hamlin’s MOV on Sunday also ranks tied for the seventh closest in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series history.

Don’t be surprised to see another tight finish in Sunday’s Folds of Honor QuickTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Two of the top-ten closest finishes in NASCAR history are at the Georgia track. Continue reading →