So far this year, be it because of missing races after his injury or after the penalty, Chase Elliott and the #9 Hendrick Motorsports team simply haven’t been at their best. In fact, a good case could be made about them not being even close to their usual standards. So with a few races to go in the regular season, the question becomes whether Elliott will make it into the playoffs. And if he does, will it be through a win or will it come with good point finishes? Jeff Gordon recently opened up about his thoughts on these subjects.
Advertisement
The Hall of Famer not only admitted that Elliott and the #9 team have been far from their best for one reason or the other, but he also revealed how he would prefer their entry into the next stage of the season. It’s also worth mentioning that Gordon had previously commented on the playoff situation for Elliott and his teammate, Alex Bowman.
Jeff Gordon on Chase Elliott’s playoff situation
Speaking in a recent interview with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, Gordon admitted being in the playoff is important for every team. “We know what challenges that they’ve had to get themselves behind and they’ve fighting hard to try to get back into it and get themselves in the playoffs,” he said.
“But at the same time, you wanna do it by winning; you wanna do it in a way where when you make it into the playoffs you’re gonna go deep into the playoffs. And I think those guys are very capable of doing that. But just haven’t had things really go their way.”
Gordon continued, “I think the points from the last couple of weeks have been pretty solid. If they can continue to do that, yes, they’re going to possibly make their way into it. But I know those guys, they want to be winning; they want to be in there, not just to be in the playoffs but to be a championship threat.”
“And I think right now they’ve got some work to do, to be honest.”
🗣️ “Just haven’t had things really go their way […] they’ve got some work to do, to be honest.” #NASCAR@JeffGordonWeb shared his take on @chaseelliott and the No. 9 @TeamHendrick group aiming for a win to make the 2023 playoffs.
More on the SXM App → https://t.co/qesEcbHBRS pic.twitter.com/XulKxQ4hy4
— SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Ch. 90) (@SiriusXMNASCAR) July 14, 2023
Chase Elliott recently claimed they’ve been heading in a good direction
Ahead of last week’s race at Atlanta, Elliott opened up on their run of form as of late. The #9 driver finished inside the Top 5 in 3 consecutive races, Sonoma, Nashville, and Chicago. And even though he ended up finishing outside the Top 10 in Atlanta, Elliott’s comments on them finding their groove would come as a relief to his fans.
“I feel like the good news is we’ve been trending in a good direction,” Elliott said as per NASCAR. “And I feel like the areas that I’ve struggled in, I’ve made a little progress over the last month or so. And we’ve had some solid runs at tracks that I was expecting to remind me more of our struggles last year.”
Elliott claimed his team is in “a really good place.” Having said that, he also pressed on the need to find a little bit of pace, which he knows falls on him to extract out of his car. This, Elliott emphasized, could end up leading him and his team in a better direction in the “crucial moments.”
