“Absolute embarrassing showing”: NASCAR fans slam Chase Elliott and HMS stars after disastrous playoff opener 

Chase Elliott and Hendrick Motorsports endured a nightmare start to the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. At the Cook Out Southern 500 in Darlington, none of the four HMS cars managed to finish inside the top 15, leaving Elliott, Alex Bowman, William Byron and Kyle Larson all scrambling in the playoff picture.

Elliott, the 2020 Cup champion, was the best of the group in 17th, while Larson ran 19th and Byron 21st. Bowman's evening was the worst of all, an error-filled 31st-place finish that dropped him below the Round of 12 cut line.

Athletic's Jeff Gluck reported Elliott’s post-race exchange with USA Network on X:

"Chase Elliott tells USA: 'Had to put our heads down and grind out a top-last. It's been a long night for sure.' On his optimism for Gateway: 'Well, we just ran 17th, so you tell me."

Jeff Gluck

@jeff_gluck

Chase Elliott tells USA: "Had to put our heads down and grind out a top-last. It's been a long night for sure." On his optimism for Gateway: "Well, we just ran 17th, so you tell me."

The post caught fans' attention, with many believing the Hendrick Motorsports drivers' themselves sounded beaten. One fan summed up the frustration across social media:

"Absolute embarrassing showing for entire HMS stable. Even the drivers seem down and out. Joke of a night."

Tina 💋🔥🥃❤️

@tmwtinatmw

Absolute embarrassing showing for entire HMS stable. Even the drivers seem down and out. Joke of a night.

Others echoed the sentiments:

Zachary Sampiere

@ZmoneyZJ

By the way he sounded he’s really frustrated. I can understand the frustration right there. He’s not the only one frustrated. All of the HMS cars just have a setup issue.

Phil Fisher

@Phil2164

Man, HMS is just missing something. Now’s not the time to start looking

Some even turned on Chase Elliott personally, targeting his streak of seven straight Most Popular Driver awards:

Christian

@COTMedia

How he wins most popular driver every year is beyond me

Kyle St.Clair

@buckeyesaint80

Wins for the #9 team are now seen as a surprise. It sucks that they’re no longer considered a week-to-week threat. #shakeupthe9team

Ethan B

@Banny0999

He was 10th before they had a bad pit stop and ran long on 2 pit cycles.

The theme was clear: a playoff opener that HMS and its drivers will want to forget.

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How the Darlington playoff opener unraveled for Chase Elliott and Hendrick Motorsports

Hendrick Motorsports' Kyle Larson (5), Alex Bowman (48), and Chase Elliott (9). Source: Imagn

For Chase Elliott, the Southern 500 didn't go according to plan. He started 21st, earned zero stage points and stayed mid-pack before crossing the line 17th. The lack of playoff points from the regular season is already hurting him. The results put him 11th on the playoff standings, just nine points to the good.

Speaking after the race, he said (via NASCAR):

"It's been a long night for sure. So, we just got to put our heads together and try to figure out how to be better next week at Gateway. And appreciate all the effort everybody at NAPA and Chevy and Hendrick Motorsports. I know everybody's working really hard. We just got to put our heads together and figure out how to go forward." (7:30 onwards)

Chase Elliott's teammates didn't fare any better. Alex Bowman started deep in 29th and never showed speed. His night was effectively ruined by a green-flag pit stop gone wrong. A malfunctioning pit gun left his crew scrambling for a replacement, but the backup wasn’t connected correctly.

The stop lasted nearly 40 seconds, leaving Bowman two laps down. Despite three wave-arounds, he never recovered and finished 31st. The result drops him last, 19 points below the cut line with two races left in the Round of 16.

William Byron, the regular-season champion, also struggled. Despite dominating the spring race at Darlington earlier this year, he collected no stage points and finished 21st this Sunday. But, he remains 25 points above the cut line, tied fifth.

Kyle Larson, meanwhile, salvaged 12 stage points from his 19th-place run to cushion his position. The 2021 champion sits third in the playoff grid, 38 points above the cut line, though his performance was well below his expectations.

The NASCAR playoff standings shuffled heavily at Darlington as all the playoff drivers changed places. While Byron and Larson are still relatively safe for now, Hendrick Motorsports as a whole has work to do.

For a team that entered the postseason with high expectations, Darlington delivered a harsh wake-up call. Now they head to Gateway, where Hendrick has yet to show real speed in the Cup era. There is no margin for error now.