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Chase Elliott won his first NASCAR Cup Series title on Sunday at Phoenix Raceway, joining his father, Bill, as premier division champion in stock car racing.
At 24 years, 11 months and 11 days, Elliott became the third youngest Cup Series champion in NASCAR history. Only Jeff Gordon, who won his first title at 24, Three Months and Eight Days in 1995, and 1950 champion Bill Rexford (then 23) were younger.
Elliott outscored other finalists Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano in the season-ending race, which was held for the first time on the Arizona 1-mile oval. Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing’s ace this season, was also competing for his first Cup Series crown; Team Penske teammates Keselowski and Logano were both looking for their second title in the series.
RELATED: Unofficial Race Results | Chase Elliott wins in Phoenix
Chase Elliott becomes the fourth driver to offer a driving championship to team owner Rick Hendrick. His march to the title gave Hendrick Motorsports their 13th title and their first since 2016, when teammate Jimmie Johnson scored the last of his record seven championships – all with Hendrick Motorsports. Hendrick’s other titles have come from Gordon, a four-time champion who has spent his entire career in the Cup Series with the organization, and 1996 title winner Terry Labonte.
Elliott entered the playoff picture with two wins, then progressed into the playoffs with wins in the round of 16 and round of 16. Along the way he continued his mastery of road racing, increasing his winning streak to four with triumphs at the Daytona International Speedway Road Course (a new site added after COVID-19 shutdown) and the Charlotte Motor. Speedway Roval. His other victories were career firsts, one on the Charlotte Oval and the other at Martinsville Speedway in the penultimate race of the season.
His Sunday triumph brought the championship back to the small town of Dawsonville, Georgia, where Bill Elliott’s march to his only Cup Series title was celebrated in 1988. The Dawsonville Pool Hall, home of the Elliotts and Other Peach State racing legends, regularly applauded Bill Elliott wins by sounding his signature “si-reen”. The owners of the pool hall moved those victory cries to mark Chase Elliott’s accomplishments as he rose through the ranks of the NASCAR National Series.
Like his father, Chase Elliott wore No.9 to a championship. They are the third father-son duo to win Cup Series titles, after Lee and Richard Petty, and Ned and Dale Jarrett – all members of the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
The championship marked Elliott’s second National Series title. He also won the NASCAR Xfinity Series title as a rookie with JR Motorsports in 2014.
The title was also a first for team manager Alan Gustafson, who finished his fifth season atop the No.9 team stand. Gustafson’s crown came in his second Championship 4 appearance; he also helped guide quadruple champion Jeff Gordon to the title round in his last full season in 2015.
This story will be updated.
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