Chase Elliott made a strong comeback this season after disappointing performances previous year. If you had to rank his 2024 season out of ten, eight would seem like a respectable assessment, given that he made it through the regular season and into the playoffs.
That is a significant improvement when compared to his previous trip, in which he failed to advance to the knockout stages for the first time in his NASCAR career.
However, Elliott not making the final 4 was indeed a bummer for his fans given how consistent he was throughout the current season. He finished seventh in the driver’s standings after the conclusion of the championship race in Phoenix.
The #9 team certainly has work to do to work on their shortcomings for this year’s run, and the off-season provides them with the opportunity to do so. But Chase Elliott’s racing season isn’t done just yet, as he dropped a hint about his non-NASCAR racing events that he will compete in by the end of this year.
Back in the day, drivers pretty much stuck to NASCAR racing with their teams every week. Moreover, the team owners didn’t allow their drivers to compete in other forms of racing apart from NASCAR. But that dynamic changed when Kyle Larson entered Hendrick Motorsports. And his enthusiasm for different disciplines of racing seems to have spread across the drivers at HMS.
WHICH EVENT IS CHASE ELLIOTT SEEKING TO PARTICIPATE IN BY END OF 2024?
Speaking to NASCAR, Elliott revealed that he is eyeing an opportunity to race in the Snowball Derby Super Late Model event, scheduled for Dec 8.
“A potential possibility there, but we just haven’t 100% decided.” But again, the HMS star is known to detach himself completely from racing, which is why his participation at the Snowball Derby is TBD.
“So yeah, I think naturally you’re going to think about racing, just because that’s what we do. But I certainly intend to just get away, take some time, recharge the batteries, just like everybody in the room here,” he added.
Now, this is indeed worrying for team owner Rick Hendrick, who has experienced his drivers risking the NASCAR season in the aftermath of their non-NASCAR racing shenanigans.
For the unversed, Alex Bowman decided to compete in the High Limits Racing mid-season in 2023 and suffered a fractured vertebra. This cost him crucial three weeks of NASCAR racing.
Chase Elliott’s season also got derailed after he broke his left leg while snowboarding early in March of 2023. This led to him missing a total of six NASCAR Cup Series races, which eventually saw him miss the playoffs.
A repeat of such incidents isn’t something veteran owner Rick Hendrick would want to see. While Elliott is still unsure of his non-NASCAR racing antics, the same cannot be said for Kyle Larson. He has already made extensive plans and is going to keep himself busy with racing.
Kyle Larson is arguably the most talented race car driver competing in NASCAR. We can put him alongside the likes of Tony Stewart and Mario Andretti, who were versatile race car drivers. While the 2024 season had its ups and downs, the HMS driver will now focus on his sprint car and dirt car racing events to wrap up his racing season.
Joining Jason Pryde Motorsports, Larson will compete at the three-day event at Perth Motorplex from Dec 28-30. Although he has previously raced in New Zealand and Australia, a visit to Perth will be his first, and he’s very excited about this experience.
“I’m really excited to see that side of Australia; I’ve never been to that side of the country. It will be a good time.” Larson was quoted saying this on Flo Racing.
But before he flies to the other part of the globe, Larson will be competing at the USAC Nationals midget races. The HMS driver has teamed up with Silva Motorsports and will compete in events spread across Merced Speedway, Bakersfield, and Ventura Raceway from November 26-30. However, his participation at the historic Chili Bowl Nationals in January 2025 is still not confirmed.
