Chase Elliot has powered through physical therapy and rehab to return to his NASCAR slot following a snowboarding accident in March.
2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion Chase Elliott, driver of Hendrick Motorsports’ No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, had a snowboarding accident on March 3 that resulted in a fractured tibia. That incident took the driver out of commission and forced his Colorado surgery at The Steadman Clinic, a U.S. Olympic National Medical Center in Vail. He entered rehabilitation at the facility before returning to his Dawsonville, GA home to continue physical therapy.
In the meantime, Josh Berry has filled in for Elliott in five of the last six Cup Series contests. His best finish of second came at Richmond Raceway the first Sunday in April, while IMSA standout road-course racer Jordan Taylor drove the No. 9 Chevy for the 27-year-old Elliott at Circuit of the Americas, starting fourth and finishing 24th; it was Taylor’s Cup Series debut.
“Having such high-caliber drivers available was a huge benefit, especially under difficult circumstances,” Jeff Andrews said. The president and general manager of Hendrick Motorsports acknowledged, “Josh and Jordan each brought a tremendous amount of professionalism to our team and we’re truly grateful for their contributions. Their preparation and talent made a big difference. We can’t overstate this.”
Hendrick Motorsports has received a waiver from NASCAR that allows Chase Elliott to be eligible for this year’s NASCAR Cup Series playoffs,. despite missing these six races due to injury. Hendrick Motorsports team owner Rick Hendrick is “looking forward to having Chase back in his race car to pick up where he left off. Since the injury, he’s worked extremely hard and focused all his time and energy on returning to the No. 9 team.”
Following his intense dedication at both rehab from his surgery and physical therapy, Elliott was cleared medically on Tuesday of this week (April 11). He tested both that afternoon and Wednesday morning in the Chevrolet Driver-in-the-Loop simulator, located at Concord, NC, before making the final decision to return on the Martinsville 0.526-mile short track, a race set for this weekend. “Throughout the last six weeks,” Hendrick confirmed, “he’s stayed fully engaged with everything we’re doing, and we know he’s chomping at the bit to get on the racetrack and compete for wins.”
Martinsville is the longest continuously-running track on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule, and the only active track that was part of the inaugural Cup Series season in 1949! Paved in 1955 – in between its two scheduled races that year – Martinsville has hosted 148 NASCAR Cup Series races since its inception.
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