When Chase Elliott gave his pick for “most punchable face in NASCAR”

Chase Elliott once shared which NASCAR driver had the "most punchable face." While the Hendrick Motorsports driver didn't name-drop, he had a favorite one in fall 2017, which most likely referred to Denny Hamlin.

During the closing laps in the 2017 Martinsville fall race, Elliott, who was driving the #24 Chevrolet at the time, was leading when Hamlin bumped him before crashing into the wall. The two NASCAR drivers had a run-in on the track after making contact on the cooldown lap.

Chase Elliott seemingly returned the favor at Phoenix Raceway after forcing Denny Hamlin to the wall. Eventually, Hamlin's #11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota blew a tire, which ended his hopes to advance to the Championship 4 round.

The following year, NASCAR Insider Jeff Gluck asked the then third-year driver who had the most punchable face among his fellow competitors. He replied:

“I think it depends on the week. To be honest with you, I feel like that probably changes often. I had a favorite there last fall. You all can figure that one out.”

Chase Elliott driving the #9 Chevrolet in the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series season - Source: Imagn

2018 was the same year Chase Elliott scored his first win in the premier series. He drove the #9 Chevy to victory at Watkins Glen International ahead of Martin Truex Jr., who ran out of fuel on the final lap. He concluded the season with three wins.

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“Just an unfortunate circumstance”: When Chase Elliott got suspended for race-ending wreck with Denny Hamlin at Charlotte

During the 2023 Coca-Cola 600, Chase Elliott was suspended one race for seemingly right-rear hooking Denny Hamlin. The incident forced Hamlin into the wall hard before collecting Elliott, which resulted in a DNF for both NASCAR drivers.

Elliott denied intentionally wrecking Hamlin after he got run up to the outside wall. He said cars tend to lose control when hitting the wall, thus he didn't intend to crash into the #11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.

“The 11 ran us up in the fence there, and once you tear the right sides off these things, it’s kind of over. Once you hit the wall in these things, you can’t drive them anymore. So unfortunately not, no, just an unfortunate circumstance,” the #9 Hendrick Motorsports driver said (via NASCAR).

Meanwhile, Hamlin described Elliott's actions as a tantrum, saying:

“It's a tantrum, and he shouldn’t be racing next week. Right rear hooks are absolutely unacceptable. I don’t care. It's the same thing Bubba Wallace did with Kyle Larson. [Exactly] the same. He shouldn’t be racing. It’s a tantrum.”

In addition to his one-race suspension, Elliott missed six races due to injury from a snowboarding accident. He eventually concluded the season without a win for the first time since 2017, with some arguing 2023 was the driver's worst year.

This year, the 29-year-old has been consistent, holding the best average finish record of 10.278 after 18 races. His most recent accomplishment was snapping a 44-race winless streak in his home race at EchoPark Speedway.

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Edited by Riddhiman Sarkar