Chase Elliott shuts down late concerns for Daytona – Sports News
Chase Elliott says the delay of The Clash will not have an effect on Daytona 500 preparations (Image: Getty Images)
NASCAR star Chase Elliott has no concerns over whether or not the delayed Cook Out Clash exhibition at Bowman Gray Stadium on Wednesday will trigger main disruptions for the 2026 season-opening Daytona 500.
NASCAR was pressured to delay the Cook Out Clash on account of historic heavy snowfall in North Carolina, pushing Sunday’s race to Monday, then to Wednesday. Snowfall registered round a foot deep, and whereas skies had been clear on Monday, eradicating the snow, clearing the roads, and hoping for freezing temperatures to heat up, has confirmed to be NASCAR‘s largest problem. AccuWeather forecasts daytime highs of 39°F on Monday, 43°F on Tuesday, and 44°F on Wednesday.
Despite the milder afternoons, nighttime temperatures are anticipated to drop under freezing, and showers stay attainable on the newly scheduled race day. The first factors race of the 2026 season, the Daytona 500, will happen a week from Sunday, giving drivers and groups round a week and a half, quite than two, to organize.
Still, one-time Cup Series champion Elliott — who will run some races for Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s JR Motorsports within the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series — is not anticipating the Clash delay to trigger main disruptions.
Elliott, who gained final season’s exhibition, was requested on The Backstrech Podcast whether or not Wednesday was absolutely the restrict, logistically talking, on a easy transition from North Carolina to Florida. “I would disagree just from the standpoint of the Clash used to always be Saturday night the week before Daytona,” Elliott mentioned.
“In Daytona, that was the only difference, but Winston-Salem being so close to Charlotte, I don’t think it’s that big of a deal from the team side. The cars are impounded in a building in Winston-Salem right now, so it’s not like you can mess with them.
Chase Elliott celebrates with the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium trophy last year (Image: Getty Images)
“So, I truthfully do not actually know that it is modified a lot from that perspective, and different than possibly the haulers getting rotated from you understand completely different elements and items that you’d take to the conflict versus taking to Daytona is likely to be a little completely different.”
Elliott is hoping the Clash will be the starting point for another successful season in NASCAR, which has undergone radical change. NASCAR has returned to The Chase, ditching its previously unpopular playoff format and one-off championship race.
“I’m trying ahead to going back. I believed it was a great occasion final 12 months,” Elliott said. “Rather a lot of power and pleasure round it. I feel the group, the vibes had been great. Obviously, it went rather well for us. But even outdoors of that, I believed it was actually good. So yeah, I’m able to get going.”
Elliott won two races in 2025. The first came at his hometown track of EchoPark Speedway and then with a dramatic last-lap pass at Kansas Speedway during the postseason.
“I imply, look, it was great to win the race. It did not change our season,” he said. “And I mentioned that after the race I’m fairly sure that, hey, this was great, nevertheless it’s not going to make or break or completely outline your 12 months as a result of we have had great years the place we did not run nicely within the Clash.
“It’s not a ‘Hey, this has to be perfect for the rest of it to go well.’ But look, it’s a competition. It’s an opportunity to go win a race. Everybody’s trying. It’s not like it’s a performative thing. It’s a very competitive event, one that I find to be a lot of fun and I look forward to getting up there and trying to go back-to-back.”
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