Chase Elliott looked to be on his way to winning NASCAR‘s most prestigious race. The driver of the #9 took the lead on the final lap of Sunday’s Daytona 500 and was in command as the pack rolled through turns three and four.
But coming to the checkered flag, it all fell apart for the 2020 Cup Series champion. With a push from 23XI Racing teammate Riley Herbst, Tyler Reddick powered past Elliott on the inside line coming to the checkered flag.
As Reddick was going past, Elliott was clipped in the right rear by Herbst, sending his NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet careening into the outside retaining wall in what was a multi-car crash, and came across the finish line in fourth place.
While he managed a top-five finish, Elliott missed out on winning “The Great American Race” in heartbreaking fashion.
Chase Elliott recounts chaotic final lap that ended with a fourth-place finish
Elliott walked through his perspective of the final lap with FOX motorsports reporter Josh Sims. After a crash heading down the frontstretch on the final lap involving then leader Carson Hocevar, Elliott felt he was “gifted” the lead.
Elliott and Front Row Motorsports driver Zane Smith put distance between themselves and the rest of the pack, and got a great push from the #38 heading into turn three.
However, as Elliott gained an advantage, he felt the momentum shift as Reddick and Herbst were coming with a full head of steam as the #9 led the pack off of turn four.
“There was going to be another run coming behind us there at some point. Unfortunately, that was accurate. Then, at that point in time, you’re just on defense and, man, that’s a really, really tough place to be, truthfully,” Elliott said.
When reflecting on the finish, Elliott said he could run it back through his a thousand times on what he could’ve done differently to win. He pondered throwing a “double-block” on Reddick, but conceded that it probably would’ve resulted in the two crashing.
“I feel like you had to pick your battles. I thought maybe somebody would pick me up on the top and you might have one more run to the line, but unfortunately, ended up getting turned around,” Elliott said.
Chase Elliott on coming up short of Daytona 500 win: ‘Sucks to be that close’
Elliott was stoic in his post-race interview despite what had just unfolded on the final lap. Yet, the 21-time Cup Series winner couldn’t shake the fact that he missed out on winning “The Great American Race” by just a straightaway.
“It just really sucks to be that close and come off turn four with the lead and not finish it off, but that’s part of this event. Unfortunately, we were on the bad end today,” Elliott said.
Elliott still managed to finish fourth, which marked his second top-five finish in the Daytona 500, with the first coming in 2021 when he finished runner-up.
On the bright side for Elliott, the Cup Series circuit heads to his hometrack of EchoPark Speedway in Atlanta, Georgia next Sunday, February 22. Elliott is the defending winner at the track as he was the victor last June.
NASCAR’s Chase Elliott Loses Daytona 500 in a Heartbreaker