CONCORD, N.C. – Nine laps into Sunday’s race at Texas Motor Speedway, Chase Elliott’s No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 got loose, sending him toward the wall.
“I made a mistake, got loose and crashed,” the driver explained. “I really hate that happened. Obviously, it’s not good and not what you’re looking for.”
The No. 9 team was able to make repairs and get Elliott back on the track, but he had to work his way up the race standings from 40th place while multiple laps behind the leader.
By the end of the race, he had made his way up to 32nd when the checkered flag waved.
“Today was very self-inflicted,” he reiterated. “I made a mistake that there’s really no excuse for and that’s what you get.”
Still, the driver said there’s no use in dwelling on the incident after the fact.
“You can’t do anything about it now,” he said. “Onward.”
The result left him eighth in the playoff standings, 78 points behind the fourth-place driver with one race remaining to make the Championship 4.
That one final opportunity to race for a title at Homestead-Miami Speedway comes this weekend when the NASCAR Cup Series heads to ISM Raceway.
“It’s just all eyes on Phoenix,” Elliott said. “It’s our last shot, so we’ll treat it as if so.”
Elliott and the No. 9 team will be eyeing Victory Lane when the race begins at 2:30 p.m. ET this Sunday on NBC.