Hendrick Motorsports announced before the 2024 season that Eddie D’Hondt would be replaced by Trey Poole as Chase Elliott’s spotter in the new year. Now that the new driver-spotter combo has completed two successful races and is on the verge of the Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas, Chase Elliott has commented on his experience thus far.
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He told the media on Saturday that Poole has been really quick in understanding what he wants and doesn’t from behind the wheel. Noting that superspeedways were tracks in which Poole was inexperienced in, he expressed his admiration for the spotter’s quick-learning abilities at Daytona and Atlanta.
Elliott’s words went, “If y’all were sitting in my seat I think you would probably appreciate it even more. I can totally tell how much he pieced things together from drafting practice and the Daytona Duel to the race. Then I saw a huge improvement in just overall awareness of what was going on.”
Poole is Elliott’s cousin and was already a part of the #9 Hendrick Motorsports crew having served as an additional spotter for the team in road courses. The driver had already expressed his confidence in Poole before the season and considered him to be someone with less drama and ego.
After a less-than-ideal start to 2024, the duo has now headed to Vegas for a challenging race, optimistic about each other’s skills.
Chase Elliott and Trey Poole are in for a challenge at Las Vegas on Sunday
It was before the 2023 Pennzoil 400 that Elliott suffered a snowboarding accident and fractured his leg. He believes that this year is already a success considering that he got to the windy city with all bones intact.
While the 2020 Cup Series champion is positive that he can reach his maximum potential and is working towards the same, the 1.5-mile track in Vegas hasn’t treated him kindly in the past. Though it has been a great track for Hendrick Motorsports as a whole, Elliott’s best finish in the Next Gen car is ninth place in the 2022 Pennzoil 400.
Admitting that Vegas has been the #9 team’s worst track over the last two years, he clarified his goal, claiming that “a lot of emphasis and effort” has gone into it, and he remains hopeful for a pay off so they can at least improve where they’ve been.
Elliott added that he’s hoping to have a shot at winning the race on Sunday, and if not that, then at least a finish inside the top 5.
