The last time Chase Elliott started on the pole it didn’t go well, with the rookie crashing just 20 laps into the February season-opening Daytona 500.
NASCAR Talladega 2016 qualifying results: Chase Elliott wins pole
Elliott captures second pole in as many restrictor-plate races, leads strong Hendrick Motorsports showing.
Elliott is hoping for a different outcome when he leads the field to the green flag in Sunday’s Sprint Cup Geico 500, having captured his second career pole with a lap of 192.661 mph in qualifying Saturday at Talladega Superspeedway,
Making his first start driving for the retired Jeff Gordon, Elliott entered Daytona optimistic of a good finish. But running in a pack of cars Elliott got loose and spun off Turn 4 through the infield grass, sustaining serious damage. That experience is something the 20-year-old rookie will apply in the second restrictor-plate race of the season.
“I’ll just try to take what I learned and try to cut down those dumb mistakes that I made in the Daytona 500 this year and just try to be smarter,” Elliott said. “The first thing is making to the end and obviously I didn’t do a very good job of that in February. So, I think that’s our first goal is to try to get to the end of the race; and if we can get there, just try to be smart.”
Austin Dillon qualified second with a lap at 192.424 mph, defending race-winner Dale Earnhardt Jr. starts third and Matt Kenseth fourth. Jimmie Johnson, a Hendrick Motorsports teammate of Elliott and Earnhardt, completes the top five.
See More:
