9 CHASE ELLIOTT
Age: 25 (Nov. 28, 1995)
Hometown: Dawsonville, Georgia
Resides: Dawsonville, Georgia
Crew Chief: Alan Gustafson
Standings: 8th
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No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE
MASTERING THE MONSTER: Chase Elliott, driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE, has seven top-five finishes at Dover International Speedway, which are his most at a single track in his NASCAR Cup Series career. The sixth-year driver has also led 321 laps at “the Monster Mile,” the third-most at any track in the series for Elliott – behind only Martinsville (429) and Phoenix (402).
‘MONSTER MILE’ STATS: At Dover, Elliott has posted seven top-five finishes in 10 starts, four of which were top-three results. Among those was his overtime win in October 2018 and a runner-up performance in 2017. Elliott finished in the top three in both of his rookie appearances at Dover in 2016 – something only Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch and Davey Allison accomplished in their rookie seasons. The 25-year-old driver also has four starts in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and one in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series at the track. He didn’t finish outside the top 10 in either series.
NOT AVERAGE: Elliott currently averages a finish of 11.3 at Dover, the second-best by an active driver at the venue behind teammate Kyle Larson (7.42). His average finish is also the sixth-best of all time of drivers with more than two starts at the 1-mile track.
GUSTAFSON AT DOVER: No. 9 crew chief Alan Gustafson will call his 33rd “Monster Mile” Cup Series race from atop the pit box on Sunday. In his previous 32 races calling the shots for five different drivers (Elliott, Busch, Casey Mears, Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon) at Dover, he has collected two wins, with his most recent victory in 2018 with Elliott. He also has 16 top-five finishes – five of which were runner-up results – 18 top-10s and 592 laps led at the track.
DOVER DOUBLE: Last year at Dover, the NASCAR Cup Series hosted a doubleheader weekend at the 1-mile track. During the Saturday afternoon race on Aug. 22, Elliott started from the pole position and led 27 laps en route to a fifth-place finish. On Sunday, Aug. 23, the No. 9 team started 17th after the top-20 finishers from Saturday’s race were inverted. Unfortunately, in the opening laps, Elliott suffered damage from a competitor checking up to avoid a multi-car accident on the front stretch. The damage was terminal and ultimately ended the No. 9 team’s day with a 39th-place finish after only six laps.
SEASON RUNDOWN: The NASCAR Cup Series season has completed 12 races in the 2021 season. Elliott has posted four top-five finishes – two of which are runner-up results – six top-10s and has led a total of 76 laps. He has one stage win and has spent 669 laps inside the top five and 1,809 laps running in the top 10.
NAPA IS BACK: The No. 9 Chevrolet will return to the familiar blue, white and yellow NAPA AUTO PARTS paint scheme this weekend at Dover. The Atlanta-based company is serving as majority sponsor for Elliott and the No. 9 team for 25 NASCAR Cup Series races this season.
PIT ROAD POWER: The No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS team owns the fifth-best average time for four-tire pit stops at 13.85 seconds through 12 races in the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season. The team is comprised of jackman T.J. Semke, gasman John Gianninoto, tire carrier Jared Erspamer and tire changers Chad Avrit and Nick O’Dell.
30-FOR-30: At Darlington Raceway Sunday, Kyle Larson (second), William Byron (fourth) and Chase Elliott (seventh) each finished in the top 10, extending a streak of at least one Hendrick Motorsports driver posting a top-10 result to 30 straight races. Team Penske ranks second with nine consecutive top-10s.
BLACKJACK: Sitting on 20, Hendrick Motorsports is chasing a 21st victory at Dover International Speedway. Six drivers have won for the organization at “the Monster Mile:” Jimmie Johnson (11), Jeff Gordon (five), Elliott (one), Geoff Bodine (one), Ken Schrader (one) and Ricky Rudd (one). Hendrick Motorsports holds the record for most wins at a track by a team with 25 victories at Martinsville Speedway.
UNDEFEATED IN OVERTIME: Four races at Dover have ended past its scheduled distance with Hendrick Motorsports winning each time. Seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Johnson was victorious in three of those events – 2005, 2015 and 2017 – while Elliott won in overtime in 2018.
CHASE-ING HISTORY: Alex Bowman, Larson and Byron are under 30 years old and have each won a race for Hendrick Motorsports this season. No NASCAR Cup Series team has ever had four drivers under the age of 30 visit victory lane in the same season. Elliott, 25, is the defending Cup Series champion and most recent winner for Hendrick Motorsports at Dover (2018).
TWO TO TIE: Hendrick Motorsports entered the 2021 season within striking distance of one of stock car racing’s most enduring achievements: Petty Enterprises’ all-time team record for NASCAR Cup Series victories. The legendary Petty organization captured the wins record from Carl Kiekhafer Racing more than 60 years ago when Lee Petty took the checkered flag at Orange Speedway on May 29, 1960, for the team’s 53rd victory. Its 268th and most recent win was delivered by driver John Andretti on April 18, 1999. Hendrick Motorsports has earned 266 points-paying Cup Series wins since Rick Hendrick founded the team in 1984 and currently needs just three to break the record at NASCAR’s highest level.
Chase Elliott, driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE, on success at Dover: “Last year was unfortunate. We got caught up in a wreck pretty early and were done for the day, but we have had some good runs at the track in the past. Hendrick has had fast cars at Dover, too, and I know I’ve said it before but I think Jimmie (Johnson) is one of the biggest reasons for that success. He was so good at Dover and gave all of us such a good baseline to start each race weekend. We look forward to getting back this weekend and, hopefully, having a good run.”
Alan Gustafson, crew chief of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE, on racing at Dover: “I always look forward to going to Dover. I have always liked the track and like racing there. Outside of our win, we have a pretty good track record at Dover, so we are looking forward to seeing what we have for Sunday.”
TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!
