"I’m kind of sentimental to the old generation" - Chase Elliott's father takes a dig at the Atlanta Motor Speedway after son's win

Chase Elliott won the Atlanta Motor Speedway race on Sunday, scripting history as the first Atlanta native to win a race at the venue since his father, Bill Elliott, won the same track in 1985. Chase joined the short list of father-son duos to ever win at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Bill Elliott proudly watched his son as he drove his #9 NAPA Chevrolet Camaro, taking Hendricks Motorsport to the victory lane. Following Chase Elliott’s epic finish in Atlanta, his father appeared on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, where he spoke about his son’s win and reflected on his days at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Speaking about the Atlanta track, Bill Elliott stated that he enjoyed the track back then before they reconfigured it in 1997. According to him, the track had its personality. In his statement, the NASCAR Hall of Famer said:

“I really enjoyed it back then. Like I said, it was unique in its own way. Had its own personality. When they come in and they reconfigured it — to me, I just liked that old but you know I’m kind of sentimental to the old generation — the Wilkesboros, and the Rockinghams, and the places like that we kind of grew up going to and it becoming a custom of going there throughout the years.”

Change is inevitable, however, and NASCAR has changed since Bill Elliott left the track two decades ago.

The senior Elliott left the track with 44 wins, 55 poles, and 320 top ten finishes, and his son Chase is now working hard to leave a higher record than his father. The Georgia native currently has 16 career wins, 130 top ten finishes, and 12 poles. He has already secured his first championship, which shows he is in the right direction.

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Chase Elliott’s performance at Atlanta Motor Speedway

Chase Elliott is undoubtedly one of the best Cup drivers to maintain his father's legacy. The 2020 Cup Series champion is among the top contenders to secure the 2022 championship.

Last Sunday’s win placed him as the top Cup driver with three wins, breaking the record as the only driver to win as many races in the past 20 events. The Atlanta race was one of his best racing weekends. He took the pole during the qualifying race and went ahead to fend off an attack from Corey LaJoie, who was a huge threat and eventually managed to overpower him.

The race was a back-to-back success as he collected second place at Road America and a win at Nashville. The Atlanta racing weekend not only marked his third win but also his third and second consecutive pole after winning the Road America pole.

Besides leading in wins, Chase Elliott is also at the top of NASCAR’s drivers’ standings with 684 points, which means he’s fully locked in the 2022 playoffs. Elliot is now looking for his fourth win this weekend at New Hampshire.