- Elliott wins in front of home fans, ending a 44-race drought
- Victory pushes him to second in points and locks in playoff spot
- Bowman’s late-race assist seals Hendrick’s dominance under the lights
Chase Elliott couldn’t have scripted a better moment to return to Victory Lane. In front of a roaring Georgia crowd at EchoPark Speedway, the Dawsonville native ended a 44-race drought by passing Brad Keselowski on the final lap to win Saturday night’s NASCAR Cup Series race.
“It was, truthfully, a pretty surreal moment,” Elliott said. “Something I’ll remember for the rest of my life. … Saturday night under the lights, been a while since we won, just getting ourselves a win and advancing up on the playoff thing.”
The win marked Elliott’s 20th career Cup victory and his first since April 2024 at Texas Motor Speedway. It also clinched a playoff spot for the 2020 champion, who now sits second in the points standings with 594, trailing only Hendrick Motorsports teammate William Byron (631). Another teammate, Kyle Larson, holds third, capping a dominant season for Hendrick so far.
Saturday’s win was Elliott’s first at Atlanta since 2022. After the race, he celebrated by climbing into the grandstands to embrace the fans chanting his name — “Chase! Chase! Chase!” — in a moment he called unforgettable.
Elliott was quick to acknowledge the role teammate Alex Bowman played in the final laps. Bowman, who finished third, gave Elliott a push and helped block Keselowski’s run.
“I’m happy for the 9 team,” Bowman said. “It’s a big win for him in his hometown. … I’m glad to have a Hendrick car in victory lane. I wish it was us.”
“I recognize that he gave me a great shove,” Elliott said. “I recognize that he took his run on Brad, too, to try to get himself to second, which ultimately helped me as well. Yeah, those are all things that I remember.”
The victory also advanced Elliott to the second round of NASCAR’s new In-Season Challenge — a five-race, bracket-style format with a $1 million prize for the winner. Elliott is now set to face John Hunter Nemechek next weekend at the Chicago Street Race. His odds improved after wrecks knocked out top seeds Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe.
“It’d be a really cool thing to win for sure and hope it works out that way,” Elliott said, referencing the potential million-dollar payout. His father, Bill Elliott, won the Winston Million in 1985, making the younger Elliott a strong candidate to add another lucrative family milestone.
Elliott’s drought-breaking win came after a stretch of strong results, including three straight top-five finishes. His absence from Victory Lane was partly due to a broken leg from a 2023 snowboarding accident that sidelined him for six races. Through it all, Elliott credited longtime crew chief Alan Gustafson for helping him stay confident and focused.
“When you’re fortunate enough to climb the mountain and be able to stand at the top of the mountain with someone, that’s an incredible achievement, right?” Elliott said. “That’s something that (Gustafson) and I will always cherish and remember that we did that together.
“For me it’s really, really important to climb that mountain with the same people that we did the first time and know that we never quit on each other. That’s just a really important piece of the puzzle for me.”
Gustafson echoed that sentiment, adding the win came at a critical point in the playoff race.
“The points were getting tight for the playoffs, for sure,” Gustafson said. “I think that’s probably the biggest thing. I think all the cars contending to win, I don’t think any of them had won. I think that’s probably the biggest thing we needed was that cushion.”
With eight races remaining in the regular season, Elliott heads to Chicago carrying confidence, momentum, and the unmistakable energy of a hometown triumph.
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