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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 →