TALLADEGA – Pole-sitter Chase Elliott was dodging flying cars left and right on the way to a fifth-place finish in the Geico 500 on Sunday at the Talladega Superspeedway.
"We tried there at the end but just didn't have enough momentum to get to those guys," Elliott said of those who finished ahead of him.
The 20-year-old rookie on the Sprint Cup circuit may not have secured that first victory he's after, but it's easy to see he has the talent to make it happen soon.
Those in our neck of the woods have seen glimpses of such since he was a young teen.
Just more than a year ago – March 15, 2015, to be exact – Elliott was standing on the asphalt of the South Alabama Speedway signing autographs before taking part in the Rattler 250 Super Late Models race.
He patiently posed for photos with fans of all ages – who understood it was likely Elliott's last time to display his talents at the track located on Alabama Highway 52 between Kinston and Opp.
With the rising star moving into Jeff Gordon's coveted Sprint Cup ride for Hendrick Motorsports in 2016, it was almost as if Elliott was putting on a farewell show at one of his favorite short tracks. He had even competed in an Xfinity race the day before in Arizona and then took a flight right after it so he could make the Rattler 250 the following afternoon.
During a phone interview leading up to the race, the Dawsonville, Ga., native explained why it was worth his effort to race again on the rural south Alabama track, where he finished third on that day.
"I think a lot of it is just growing up and doing a lot of asphalt and short track Late Models racing in the past, and I think as much as anything is the people I've been able to do it with," Elliott said. "Just some of the best people you could possibly have to go race with and learn from.
"I'm still pretty close to a lot of those guys, and I like to take every chance I have to go race with them."
Elliott was just 14 when he raced his first Rattler 250. A year later he returned and had the fastest car on the track, leading most of the race before being penalized and sent to the back of the pack with 13 laps left.
It was ruled he caused a wreck involving eventual winner Grant Enfinger and local track favorite Bubba Pollard as they raced three-wide coming around turn 3 at the bottom of the track.
Though he didn't race another Rattler 250 – the biggest race at SAS – until last year, he did come back for several Late Models races in between.
One October night in 2013, NASCAR legend Bill Elliott was a surprise entrant with his son in the Alabama Pro 125. Chase Elliott edged Dothan's Korey Ruble in an exciting win, and his father finished fourth in what was a memorable treat for the fans and the Elliotts.
In his return to Alabama this week, Elliott showed he had a car fast enough to contend by winning the pole at 192.661 mph. Ironically, it came 29 years to the day that his father set the NASCAR pole record of 212.809 at Talladega.
Longtime followers of the sport will remember that in the race to follow on May 3, 1987, Bobby Allison cut a tire and went flying into the catch-fence that separated the fans from the track at Talladega. Some fans were injured as debris from the car went into the stands.
In a safety move to slow the cars, NASCAR required smaller carburetors be put in the cars for the two remaining races at Talladega and Daytona that year. The next year, restrictor plates were mandated for races on the two superspeedways of Daytona and Talladega.
Which brings us back to Sunday's race, where restrictor plates keep the speeds below 200 mph, yet there continues to be chaos on this track.
Elliott was one of the lucky ones who managed to stay away from trouble. He even made a push on the final lap before Brad Keselowski took the checkered flag while another wreck was happening behind.
Elliott went from 22nd to fifth in the last 10 hair-raising laps by avoiding two final crashes – one involving 12 cars, the other collecting seven. He was one of only five drivers not involved in a wreck during the race.
Elliott had also been the pole-sitter in the season-opener at Daytona, but an early wreck ended his day.
So what did he learn during his second restrictor-plate race?
"You can't have a good day unless you finish," Elliott said.
Consider Sunday a good day for Elliott.
Follow Jon Johnson on Twitter @eaglesportsed
Source: JON JOHNSON COLUMN: Chase Elliott doesn't win but survives wreck-fest
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