“Those are things you don’t take for granted”: Chase Elliott grateful for his playoff position amid major driver upsets this year

Chase Elliott recently expressed appreciation for his playoff berth and empathized with the drivers who didn't qualify. Having narrowly missed playoff qualification himself in the 2023 season, the #9 Chevy driver acknowledged the importance of not taking things for granted.

Elliott, who has been driving in NASCAR for 10 years now, has accumulated 28 career wins, a championship in 2020, and a regular-season championship in 2022. However, just a year after his regular season win, he faced setbacks that prevented his playoff qualification, including missing several races due to a tibia injury and a one-race suspension.

This year, Chase Elliott broke his 42-race winless streak after securing a victory at Texas Motor Speedway. When asked by Fox Sports reporter Bob Pockrass if it feels any different after failing to make the playoff media session last year, the 28-year-old responded:

"I can't really say it feels a whole lot different. And I think the reason for that is we've been fortunate enough to be a part of it for a number of years and that those are things that you don't take for granted. I think the way the points unfolded this season is really a good reminder of that to not take it for granted because there were some great drivers and teams that missed this year.

"And it wasn't because they necessarily had you know abysmal seasons that just the way the cards unfolded. So, yeah, you never know."

With the playoffs underway, Chase Elliott will have 10 opportunities to replicate his 2020 championship win.

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Jeff Gordon has expressed confidence in Chase Elliott's potential to clinch the championship this season

Throughout the first 26 races of 2024, Chase Elliott has consistently steered clear of trouble and optimized his finishes, concluding the regular season ranked seventh. He even topped the points table at one stage, despite claiming only a single win.

Jeff Gordon highlighted that while all four Hendrick Motorsports teams have secured playoff spots, Chase Elliott’s team appears the strongest. Gordon noted:

"It’s the way he thinks and the way he races and the way he executes. I think right now, if I just look at who’s the most solid championship-caliber team, I think it’s them because, OK, they might not have the laps led and the number of wins but they also don’t have the DNFs. They’re always in this third-to-seventh range almost every weekend and that’s strong." [via Hendrick Motorsports]

In contrast, the current leader in the driver standings, Kyle Larson, has registered four DNFs this season. Similarly, Denny Hamlin and Christopher Bell, who are tied for the second-highest number of wins at three, have encountered six and four DNFs, respectively.

Meanwhile, Chase Elliott has only failed to finish one race during the regular season.