Breaking news
NASCAR Cup Charlotte
Chase Elliott rues decision that cost Coke 600 victory shot
NASCAR star Chase Elliott believes the decision to pit for tires ahead of overtime in Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte, which cost him the lead with two laps remaining, was inescapable as the following cars were always going to do the opposite to whatever he did.
Charles Bradley
Edited: May 25, 2020, 1:26 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Elliott was within touching distance of victory when the yellow flag flew for Hendrick Motorsports teammate William Byron, who blew a tire and spun. That led to an overtime finish, and the crucial decision over whether to pit for fresh tires or not for the two-lap shootout.
On fresh rubber at the restart, Elliott surged from 11th to third, and would likely have won the race if there had been another caution. But the race ran green to the finish, and Brad Keselowski won from Jimmie Johnson. The latter was then disqualified for a post-race technical infringement, giving Elliott second place.
Read Also:
- Brad Keselowski holds off Johnson in OT for Coke 600 win
- Jimmie Johnson disqualified, loses runner-up finish in 600
Elliott said the decision, called by crew chief Alan Gustafson, was effectively doomed as the pack of cars behind him would only have pitted if he’d stayed out to retain his lead, leaving him a sitting duck out front on old tires.
“You just make the best decision you can based on the information you have,” said Elliott. “When you are leading the race like that, people behind you are going to do the exact opposite of what you do.
“That was the situation we were put in. Al [Gustafson] made the decision, we stuck with it, and it didn't work out.”
Read Also:
- Chase Elliott breaks silence over Kyle Busch's "rare mistake"
- Chase Elliott shouldn’t retaliate against Kyle Busch, says Hamlin
The incident came just days after Elliott was wrecked from second place in the second Cup Series race at Darlington by Kyle Busch. He gets another shot at redemption this Wednesday, when NASCAR runs a shorter Cup race at Charlotte.
“Just try again,” he said of his approach to the upcoming race. “That's all you can do. I mean, there is really no other option. I can't rewind time. There's no other choice.
“This week's been pretty unfortunate. We've had some tough losses in my career, for however many years I've been doing this, five, six years, unfortunately. It is what it is.”
Elliott said that Sunday night’s ending felt “a little different, for sure” from the midweek event. When asked to elaborate, he replied: “We were a lap and a half away from winning the Coca-Cola 600.”
After the race, Kyle Busch was the first driver to commiserate with Elliott, briefly ignoring NASCAR’s social distancing rules to put him arm around him.
When asked what Busch had said to him, Elliott replied: “He just felt bad for us.”
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Jimmie Johnson disqualified, loses runner-up finish in 600
Next article Despite win, Brad Keselowski’s future remains in doubt
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Charles Bradley
Mika Hakkinen on his darkest day in F1
Formula 1
Formula 1
Mika Hakkinen on his darkest day in F1
Dillon: Spotter was “wrong” to shout “wreck him!” before Hamlin clash
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Richmond II
Dillon: Spotter was “wrong” to shout “wreck him!” before Hamlin clash
Hamlin: NASCAR stripping Dillon of win would be “warranted”
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Richmond II
Hamlin: NASCAR stripping Dillon of win would be “warranted”
More from
Chase Elliott
Winners and losers from a crash-filled NASCAR Cup race at Gateway
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Gateway
Winners and losers from a crash-filled NASCAR Cup race at Gateway
Chase Elliott apologizes to Chase Briscoe after Gateway crash: 'I had nowhere to go'
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Gateway
Chase Elliott apologizes to Chase Briscoe after Gateway crash: 'I had nowhere to go'
Chase Elliott, Ryan Blaney rescue stalled 23XI cars at Darlington
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Darlington II
Chase Elliott, Ryan Blaney rescue stalled 23XI cars at Darlington
Latest news
Zara launches new Ayrton Senna clothing collection inspired by F1 legend
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Singapore GP
Zara launches new Ayrton Senna clothing collection inspired by F1 legend
Gibbs, Spire and Gabehart argue over contempt and injunction
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Charlotte II
40 min
Gibbs, Spire and Gabehart argue over contempt and injunction
William Byron to run Jeff Gordon throwback Axalta scheme at Phoenix
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Charlotte II
1 h
William Byron to run Jeff Gordon throwback Axalta scheme at Phoenix
Alexander Rossi takes over IR-28 testing as IndyCar pushes new chassis to the limit at Sebring
IndyCar
Indy IndyCar 1 h
Alexander Rossi takes over IR-28 testing as IndyCar pushes new chassis to the limit at Sebring
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe