Chase Elliott defies the odds to win big in his hometown NASCAR race

Chase Elliott finally ended his 44-race winless streak in front of his hometown fans. The Dawsonville native bagged his maiden win of the season in the Quaker State 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, marking the return of the Cup Series to the 1.5-mile, quad-oval for the second time this season.

With that, the Hendrick Motorsports driver made the playoffs. Rounding up the top five were Brad Keselowski, Alex Bowman, Tyler Reddick, and Erik Jones. Elliott, a native of Georgia, led 41 of 260 scheduled laps in his No. 9 Chevy Camaro.

Visibly elated during his post-race interview with TNT’s Marty Snider, Chase Elliott said,

“Unbelievable! How about that? Are you kidding me? I never in my life. This is unbelievable. Thank you guys so much. What a special car. It was a lot of fun. This right here is something I’ll never forget.”

However, things weren't that great for Ryan Blaney, who happens to be Chase Elliott’s best friend. The Team Penske ace got caught up in a Stage 1 wreck triggered by Joe Gibbs Racing driver Christopher Bell.

Others involved in the mess were Bubba Wallace, AJ Allmendinger, and Austin Dillon. Blaney’s car was damaged and in no position to continue the race. The driver had to settle for a DNF, his sixth this year.

“Story of our year: Getting caught up in other people’s garbage,” Blaney ranted. “As soon as I feel like we get it going pretty good and find some momentum, we never really seem to have things going our way. Tried to flip the stage and was right in the middle of it. Stinks and that’s the way it goes sometimes.”

Alex Bowman is the only Hendrick Motorsports driver who has yet to qualify for the playoffs. Needless to say, he has to win to get in. Next up for the drivers is the Grant Park 165 at the Chicago street circuit on Sunday, July 6.

---

NASCAR hands L1 penalty to Chase Elliott’s No. 17 Xfinity team following last week’s Pocono outing

Chase Elliott took part in last week’s Xfinity Series race at Pocono Raceway as the wheelman of the No. 17 Hendrick Motorsports Chevy. Starting the race from the pole, he finished fourth behind Connor Zilisch (winner), Jesse Love, and Christian Eckes.

However, NASCAR deemed something wasn’t right in his car and so sent it back to the R&D Center for further inspection. The results came out, and it seemed that the team had violated Section 14.3.3.2.1.1 K&L of the NASCAR Rule Book, which mentions how the main frame rail conical receivers should be placed.

As a result, Hendrick Motorsports was handed an L1 penalty, which took away 40 owner and 10 playoff points from the No. 17 team. It will not affect them that much as the team competes only part-time in the series.

The team was fined $40,000, and crew chief Adam Wall got suspended for the next three points-paying events. Hendrick Motorsports chose not to appeal the penalty.

Get the latest NASCAR All-Star race news, Xfinity Series updates, breaking news, rumors, and today’s top stories with the latest news on NASCAR.

Edited by Tushhita Barua