Elliott and NAPA Battle Up and Down Day at Chicago

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In: Xfinity Series News

Chase Elliott, driver of the No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet, finished 14th in Saturday’s Furious 7 300 NASCAR XFINITY Series (NXS) race at Chicagoland Speedway. Elliott’s car began the day loose but after an adjusting pit stop, the NAPA AUTO PARTS machine found itself in the top-10 midway through the race.  Despite the team’s efforts to reign in the handling, Elliott’s condition progressively loosened and forced the team to settle for an uncharacteristic finish.

Elliott deemed their 17th starting position a surprise after his qualifying runs, commenting that the car felt great. He didn’t wait long to improve that position as the NAPA AUTO PARTS team quickly moved into the 13th position after the green flag waved. On the multi-groove Chicagoland Speedway, Elliott found himself hugging the white line in the bottom groove to begin the race.

Twenty laps into the race, Elliott reported a loose condition, telling crew chief Ernie Cope that his Chevrolet was loose in and loose off. A lap 22 caution for debris on the backstretch allowed the NAPA team to make a wedge adjustment and get fresh tires. Elliott entered the top-10 for the first time on lap 31 and relayed back to his team that his car was much better.

Around lap 62, Elliott felt his car tighten, especially in the middle of the corner.  Even with the condition, the NAPA AUTO PARTS team was a solid seventh when the race hit its halfway mark at lap 100. A caution flew shortly after the midway point and Cope made the call to bring the No. 9 Chevrolet down pit road.

As day turned to night, Elliott’s car increasingly became freer. The team dropped spots as a result, falling to 18th at one point in the race’s second half. A caution with 59 laps to go brought the NAPA machine down pit road one final time. Cope’s adjustments made the car tighter in the middle, similar to the setup they were running at the halfway point. With the changes, Elliott made strides in the final 50 laps, continuing to fight and improving on his track position in the race’s waning moments.

The finish puts Elliott third in the point standings, 28 points behind leader Chris Buescher. Kyle Busch won the race and was followed by Matt Kenseth, Darrell Wallace Jr., Paul Menard and Ty Dillon.

Chase Elliott, driver No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS team

“I started off the day too loose but eventually the NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet became consistently tight across the middle. Entry and exit were manageable but it was sometimes a struggle to get back to the gas because of the tight condition. Our NAPA team worked really hard, especially after qualifying. We fought all day long and we’ll continue to fight as the season moves forward. We’re still focused on that ultimate prize and we’ll turn our focus to Kentucky.”

JR Motorsports PR

Speedway Digest Staff
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