Sports
Chase Elliott Under Fire as His Entitled Career Sees Him Sway Away FromNASCAR Family Responsibilities
Chase Elliott Under Fire as His Entitled Career Sees Him Sway Away FromNASCAR Family Responsibilities
Full Speed TV series on Netflix has garnered a lot of attention and praise since the release of its first season. But it did seem amiss without one of the sport’s most famed professionals, Chase Elliott. He was a major absentee and while he was not part of the playoffs last year, a big name like that would always help with the viewership. Unfortunately, the Hendrick Motorsports driver currently wants nothing to do with the show and has voiced his priorities.
His words have received mixed reactions. Among these, the spotters on the Door Bumper Clear podcast were not thrilled. As per Freddie Kraft and Brett Griffin, taking part in such non-racing activities would only help the sport become more popular in the eyes of the world. So, Elliott, taking a step back from such responsibilities, was seen as nothing but an act of selfishness.
Not everyone seems satisfied with Chase Elliott’s reason to stay away
Chase Elliott had said that the reason he did not want to go through with the show was to focus on his racing solely. It has been a tough couple of seasons for the driver of the #9 car and the only thing he wanted to concentrate on was getting back to the level at which he used to perform. It’s understandable from a competitor’s standpoint, but here’s the thing, every driver has that mentality and they go out and do all this stuff, anyway.
Along similar lines, the hosts of the show Door Bumper Clear discussed the issue of Elliott’s non-participation and the reasoning behind it. But, Kraft strongly put forth the narrative of how the game is bigger than the player and the reason he did not seem satisfied with Chase Elliott’s answer. “I completely understand what Chase is saying, but that is not how this game is played. I promise you every driver in the field would like to just solely focus on going fast and solely focus on whatever is gonna make them a better race car driver.”
“But there’s a while other side to this and that is the business side of this motorsports and you can’t just rely on ‘I’m not gonna do that because it’s gonna slow me down on the race track,” Freddie Kraft opined.
His sentiments were shared by Brett Griffin, who invoked legendary race car driver Jeff Burton to drive home his point about doing whatever possible to make the sport grow.
A lot of drivers will relate to what Chase Elliott said, but as far as the spotter is concerned, there is a lot more to NASCAR than just driving race cars and competing for wins. Griffin said that the Hendrick Motorsports star’s comments made it sound like he did not care about the development of the sport.
“Jeff Burton told me all the time, ‘you’re supposed to leave the sport better than you found it, you’re supposed to do things to help grow the sport, you’re supposed to do things to help engage with fans, engage with sponsors.’ So when he (Elliott) says that it’s like selfishly, he doesn’t care. And I know that’s probably not the case,” he said.
“But at the same time, it’s a lot of work to do what Denny Hamlin did and what all these people in his world do. Denny Hamlin doesn’t have a championship, but he’s a Hall of Fame driver in my mind. And he’s running a company, and he gets the big picture. I don’t know that Chase has to care.”
Do you think Elliott’s reluctance to be a part of the NASCAR: Full Speed Netflix series is a sign of his careless attitude toward the sport or do you also believe that getting back on the track in the optimum form as a racer takes the driver’s seat currently? Let us know your thoughts.
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It shouldn’t have come from his mouth: Christopher Bell disgrace Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson in public
Christopher Bell disgrace Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson in public
Christopher Bell made his choice about NASCAR’s top superstars based on their achievements in races. He believes that drivers like Austin Dillon from RCR, Kyle Busch from JGR, Brad Keselowski from Team Penske, and Bubba Wallace from RFK Racing are the top drivers in terms of wins.
Bell did not mention big names like Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick, who may be famous but do not have the same level of success as the veterans. He also noted that in the Next-Gen era, there is greater equality in the field, with 15-20 cars competing for the win each week.
This means that the dominance seen in the Big-3 era may not return. Bell suggests that NASCAR needs to find unique ways, like the Netflix documentary, to improve the sport.
Three weeks have passed since the Texas race, and the stunning comeback story it harbored is still the talk of the town. After getting sidelined for 42 Cup races, Chase Elliott stormed back into the winning scene of NASCAR. And the journey to the podium has been a prickly one, laden with obstacles every step of the way.
Chase Elliott suffered a knee injury in a snowboarding accident in 2023 and saw his playoff chances spiraling away from him. His troubles saw no end in sight as his long-time spotter, Eddie D’Hondt, packed up his bags and left. However, the memory of his previous fire helped his journey of recovery.
2023 marked the first season that Chase Elliott walked out of a NASCAR Cup schedule without a single win. However, he did not let his drooping spirits get the better of him. Elliott worked hard with his No. 9 team for a slow but sure comeback in 2024. They crept up the ladder after Daytona, never letting the winless hangover overcome them.
Elliott secured 5th place at Richmond and then grabbed a podium finish at Martinsville. The six-time defending Most Popular Driver held his fans at the edge of their seats. Sure enough, Chase Elliott found his long-lost glory in the Lone Star state. On a recent ‘Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour’ episode, Harvick asked Elliott about the relief he felt on seizing that coveted win. Elliott responded, “Yeah, the first time…I’m not quite used to seeing the other side of the interviews…it is odd, I’m getting used to it. Yeah definitely, relief involved, for sure.”
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We are where we belong: Lewis Hamilton ruthless after Mercedes bankruptcy
Mercedes experienced another blow in the neck at the start of the Formula 1 weekend in Miami. George and Hamilton failed in sprint qualifying in Q2. After the slap, Hamilton didn’t even look for excuses, but instead came to a ruthless conclusion.
“I have the feeling that we got everything out of our car. That’s just our pace. We have to accept that we are seven tenths of a second behind,” said the record world champion.
Mercedes in the Miami midfield: balance is right, result is not
Over the past few weekends, setup experiments have often been cited as an explanation for poor results. There was no talk of this in Miami, although the upgrades that Mercedes brought to the track on a large scale and the sprint format would have given plenty of reason to blame a setup search.
But according to Hamilton, there was no problem with the car’s balance. “The car felt very good in training and it didn’t feel bad in sprint qualifying either,” he summarized. Hopes for the race are muted. “The sprint race will be tough. I don’t expect much from 12th place. Plus, it’s not easy to overtake and follow other cars on this track,” said Hamilton.
Lewis Hamilton pessimistic: Are points even possible?
“We’ll just try to get into the points somehow, if we can,” are his small goals. George Russell’s outlook for the short race on Saturday sounded a little more optimistic. “I have no doubt that we will continue to sprint forward.” He starts in P11, just one position ahead of his teammate and compatriot.
However, he sees a need for action with a view to qualifying for the sixth Grand Prix of the 2024 Formula 1 season. “We have to get our qualifying problems under control. Because it is always difficult to fight with other cars when you start from behind “, he said.
Russell’s balance conclusion was similar to Hamilton’s: “In the soft tire felt good on our car, but on the medium tire in qualifying we couldn’t get our car into the sweet spot.”
Mercedes dead end: After the first training session things go downhill
What is particularly alarming for Mercedes is a well-known phenomenon this season: after a good start to the weekend in the first training session, there is no improvement in the following sessions. Mercedes engineer Andrew Shovlin also noted this: “Unfortunately, in the crucial session, we were unable to take the step that others were able to, as we have seen many times this year.”
The Silver Arrows still find a little consolation in the time table: the gaps were quite small in the first qualifying session of the weekend. P5 was only two tenths of a second away. Whether a comparison with RB driver Daniel Ricciardo and a gap of seven tenths to the top meets the demands of a team that once dominated is another matter.
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Millions of Dollars: Dale Earnhardt Jr. faces financial challenges and raises concerns with all the blame on NASCAR
Dale Earnhardt Jr. faces financial challenges and raises concerns with all the blame on NASCAR
Dale Earnhardt Jr. reveals lack of profitability in NASCAR teams. The NASCAR Hall of Famer has always been vocal about the financial challenges and concerns that arise from owning a racing team in NASCAR. This is due to the current state of NASCAR and the reason why none of the teams are able to generate profits.
During an episode of his podcast, Dale Jr. Download, the 49-year-old driver shared his thoughts on the agreement between NASCAR and the teams. He discussed how he never made money as a team owner, including his Xfinity team, JR Motorsports, and how none of the teams can turn a profit under the current agreement.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. expressed frustration with the overall situation and showed empathy towards the teams, understanding the significant amount of money invested behind the scenes. The financial situation of NASCAR teams seems to be quite complex after the new grant agreement, and NASCAR will likely need to address this issue to avoid future complications.
During the same conversation, Dale Earnhardt Jr., who is also a team owner at JRM, shared an interesting detail about Denny Hamlin’s perspective on the profitability of NASCAR teams. According to Earnhardt Jr., co-owner of 23XI Racing, Hamlin supports the teams and is actively working to make them profitable.
Earnhardt Jr. revealed that he has had several discussions with Hamlin about the importance of profitability and how they have been collaborating behind the scenes to help teams achieve financial success. Only time will tell if these efforts will lead to improvements in the financial situation of NASCAR teams.
It shouldn’t have come from his mouth: Christopher Bell disgrace Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson in public
We are where we belong: Lewis Hamilton ruthless after Mercedes bankruptcy
