Despite Chase Elliott’s lackluster performances over the last two years, Rick Hendrick‘s faith in Chase Elliott remains unshaken. That trust has been since 2011. When Hendrick originally signed Elliott back in 2011, it was something of a gamble — an experimental move diverging from his usual strategy. Historically, Hendrick had a penchant for seasoned, proven competitors, driven by a belief that fielding a premier NASCAR team demanded instant results and consistency.
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Nurturing young talent could mean a slower burn, potentially risking short-term team performance for long-term gains. Despite his usual approach, Hendrick gambled on Elliott with a driver development deal.
The #9 HMS pilot made his full-time debut in the NASCAR K&N East Series and clinched his inaugural NASCAR victory at Iowa Speedway on May 19, 2012. Reflecting on his entry into Hendrick’s development program during a 2013 interview, Elliott expressed deep gratitude for the chance. He articulated it as,
“I’ve said it time and time again it’s an opportunity of a Lifetime and one that I wouldn’t trade anything for you know. Obviously, Mr. H has been an awesome guy to me. He’s given me an opportunity that is just great. It’s allowed me to do things that I wouldn’t have been able to do had this not come about.”
He elaborated further, “He’s been very fair to me. And more than anything he’s just been a good mentor and a guy that I feel like is leading me down a good path right now. So, I’m excited about that.”
Not only did Mr. H extend to Elliott a chance seldom offered to others, but he also paired him with Lance McGrew, a crew chief who had won a nationwide championship, to set the stage for Elliott’s promising career path.
Elliott has walked in his father’s legendary footsteps
While his peers were glued to video games, Chase was a regular at the racetracks, watching his father, Bill Elliott, race to victory at iconic venues like Daytona, Talladega, and Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and secure the title of NASCAR’s most popular driver an impressive 16 times. He observed firsthand his father’s induction into the Motorsports Hall of Fame and how he captivated a loyal fan base.
From these experiences, Chase absorbed invaluable racing insights and strategies that would later help him blaze past competitors on the track. In 2011, as he took the wheel for Hendrick Motorsports, he quickly proved his mettle by finishing the season in top-10, with 3 out of 12 races ending in the top-5 in the K&N Pro Series East.
Currently, though, his sights are set on clawing his way back into the top-4 of the NASCAR Cup Championship, aiming to add more accolades to the family legacy.
