WATCH: Chase Elliott confronts Daniel Suarez after top-20 finishing streak comes to an end at Chicago

After Chase Elliott's impressive top-20 streak was snapped due to a late-race tangle with Daniel Suarez, the #9 HMS driver sought out Suarez for a post-race discussion. Although their conversation remained private and was not recorded by any cameras, it appeared that the two drivers managed to smoothen things out.

During the race’s final lap, Elliott was in the thick of the top 15, dueling with Trackhouse Racing’s Daniel Suarez for the 13th position. While the broadcast focused on the nail-biting showdown for first between Alex Bowman and Tyler Reddick, an important incident happened on Turn 11.

Elliott, pushing hard, made a move past Suarez, but the contact triggered a chain reaction - Suarez collided with Brad Keselowski, sending him crashing into the tire barrier.

Right after their clash, Suarez nudged the back of Elliott’s car at the next turn, causing Elliott to spin out and lose the 13th position. Later on, NASCAR released an in-car video capturing the drivers’ cars during the final lap.

Post-race, the #9 driver approached Suarez on the pit road to discuss the incident. Although Chase Elliott was visibly frustrated by Suarez's racing tactics, it looked like the conversation clarified the situation for #9, ending with a reconciliatory embrace from Suarez.

Chase Elliott had been on a historic run, not finishing outside the top 20 in the past 19 races - a feat unmatched in over three decades. The consistency had kept him within the top two on the driver standings, even leading at times. Elliott achieved a personal best of 22 consecutive top-20 finishes.

However, his streak came to an end at the Grant Park 165 in Chicago, where he finished 21st, causing him to slip 11 points behind Kyle Larson on the standings.

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Chase Elliott's sponsor abruptly leaves Hendrick Motorsports

Originally, Hooters planned to sponsor Chase Elliott's #9 car in three races during 2024. They met their commitments at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Texas Motor Speedway, with Elliott clinching a victory in Fort Worth.

However, there’s been a change of plans. Chase Elliott's Hooters sponsorship in the NASCAR Cup Series has been wrapped up sooner than expected. The partnership between Hooters and Hendrick Motorsports came to an early end, as confirmed by a team statement to RACER’s Kelly Crandall.

Elliott's car will no longer feature the Hooters branding at Richmond Raceway in August. The news came on the heels of Hooters revealing that they would be shutting down 40 of their restaurants nationwide.

Nevertheless, Chase Elliott will be ready to compete at Pocono Raceway in The Great American Getaway 400 Presented by VisitPA.com next. His performance has been solid on the track, averaging a 13.8 finish.

Out of his 14 races at Pocono, Elliott has clinched a win, landed in the top-5 four times and secured top-10 finishes in the other nine. Despite a tough start last year, at 35th, Elliott worked his way up to finish 10th.