“A lot has changed since then”: Chase Elliott wary that past success might not help him at his home track this weekend

Chase Elliott's somewhat haphazard 2023 NASCAR Cup Series campaign is a story riddled with misfortune. Elliott put in a dominating performance last year, and it culminated in him clinching the regular-season championship. However, the Dawsonville, Georgia native is nowhere near doing the same this season.

Sitting just outside the fringes of making it into the playoffs, the #9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 driver hopes to salvage a rough start to the 2023 season. Having suffered a range of setbacks like injuries as well as penalties, Atlanta Motor Speedway can give him a much-needed confidence boost.

Despite coming to a track where he won last year, Chase Elliott is cautiously realistic about what he can achieve this Sunday during the Quaker State 400.

The 27-year-old, who is 55 points away from the final playoff spot, had the following to say about his chances this weekend during a chat with NBC Sports:

“We had a good summer stretch, but a lot has changed since then. I think a lot changed really last fall when we started running not as good. Personally, the setups and just the direction that the garage went in was a pretty large departure of what we had success with through the early stages of the season and through the summer months.”

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Chase Elliott on a string of good results since the last three races

Having finished in the top five for the past three races, Chase Elliott finally managed to string together victories in his slow-starting 2023 season. Elaborating to NBC Sports on what he needs to get himself and the #9 crew at Hendrick Motorsports into victory lane this season, Elliott said:

“I think our team is in a really good place, we just need a little bit of pace. I’ve been saying that over the last couple of weeks. I think a lot of that falls on me to extract that pace, to know in the early stages of the event or in our short practice session to say, ‘Hey, I need this, this and this to go better.’"

With a total of eight races until the 2023 Cup Series season kicks into the Playoffs, pressure is certainly building up for drivers like Elliott. Watch him race in his home state this Sunday at 7:00 pm ET.