Chase Elliott, still seeking the NASCAR Cup Series win he needs to qualify for the NASCAR Playoffs, recorded a third-place finish at Darlington Raceway on Sunday, his first top five since returning from a broken leg in a crash. snowboard.
The top five came despite his involvement in an eight-car crash with 12 laps to go in the scheduled 293-lap race. However, Elliott was unhappy with his performance.
“I just do such a terrible job going through traffic,” Elliott said. “I get stuck behind guys, and I just feel like people who drive cars like mine don’t do that. They tend to go through it and get to where they belong.
Elliott said the problems came from him, not his car.
“I just have to try to improve and keep working in the areas that I’m struggling with and try to build on the improvements that we’ve made,” Elliott continued. “I certainly have a long way to go.”
Elliott has 13 more runs to secure that win before the Cup Series playoffs start on September 3, back in Darlington.
Wallace upset over finish order
Bubba Wallace produced his second consecutive top five finish and third this season in Sunday’s Goodyear 500 at Darlington Raceway, but the Toyota driver was unhappy with the order of finish.
“I keep watching that pylon (which scores) and I’m still pissed off,” said Wallace, who led three times for three laps and finished fifth. “There are a few cars up there that were in a wreckage that were put back in front of us. It’s shit and it’s frustrating to get beat up like that. I thought we were a second place car.
Martin Truex Jr. was involved in more than one incident on Sunday.
Multi-car accident ends Truex’s day
Martin Truex Jr. led twice for 145 laps in the 295-lap overtime of Sunday’s Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway, but it was an eight-car crash that ended his day.
In fact, Truex pointed to an incident with Ross Chastain at the end of Stage 2 that harmed his car and led to the crash later in the event.
Truex and Chastain were racing for the second stage win when their cars collided and Truex spun. He said this incident knocked his car’s foot off the front right.
“There was a lot of room there, but he just fell off the wall and hit me,” Truex said. “Pretty shitty from there and then on that restart (at lap 281) I guess I got really tight. I don’t even know who I pinned against the wall, but I apologize to them.
Kevin Harvick had to work for his second place finish at Darlington.
Harvick battles for second place
Kevin Harvick produced his first second-place finish this season in Sunday’s Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway, but the Ford driver struggled for most of the race.
“The Fords struggle in traffic with this particular aero package and it’s hard to catch up,” said Harvick, who led twice for five laps.
“Then we lost a lot of ground on pit road under the green flag pit stop.”
Towards the end of the race, Harvick was involved in an eight-car crash that left his Ford with structural damage.
“I think if you had dropped us in first or second place, we probably could have raced there,” Harvick said.
