Chase Elliott, driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on racing in the DAYTONA 500: "This is a tough race. A tough race to be in position (to win). I feel like you can do all the right things and it still does not go your way. Hopefully, this is the year we can get it done. We’ve had a few good opportunities at it in the past, but it just hasn’t gone in our favor so far."
Alan Gustafson, crew chief of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on getting your car right for the DAYTONA 500: “Once you race in the Duels, you're going know what your car has. You’re going to know your ailments and what you need to improve. You won’t be racing in the same temperature conditions as Sunday, but you’re still going to have a good understanding of what you have, and you’ll have a couple of days to try to improve that during practice.”
Gustafson, on the team’s outlook for 2023 and the sophomore season of the Next Gen car: "Going into 2023, we have a baseline now for all the tracks and we know individually we need to improve at those tracks. Overall, it’s always the same areas – you want a faster car, you want a better strategy, you want better execution, better pit stops. I think we know the detail now on what it's going to take to do that, but so does everybody else. It’s going to take a lot of work and effort to get that extra 10%."
9 CHASE ELLIOTT | | | | Hometown: Dawsonville, Georgia | | Resides: Dawsonville, Georgia | | Crew Chief: Alan Gustafson | | | | |
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No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 | | TALKIN’ ABOUT DAYTONA: In 14 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Daytona International Speedway, Chase Elliott has two top-five finishes, four top-10s and three poles. He’s led 157 laps on the 2.5-mile superspeedway, including 31 laps last August. Elliott earned a runner-up finish in the 2021 DAYTONA 500 (his personal best in the season-opening event) and drove to a 10th-place result last year. He is one of only two drivers to have an active streak of top-10 finishes in the prestigious race with two. The 2020 Cup Series champion is one of five active drivers to earn a runner-up finish in the 500 and not yet win the event.
HISTORY MAKING: In 2016, Elliott became the youngest driver to earn the DAYTONA 500 pole at the age of 20 years, 2 months and 17 days. The Dawsonville, Georgia, native earned his second pole for the crown jewel event the very next year.
DRAFT DOMINANT: Across six drafting-style races in 2022 (Daytona, Atlanta Motor Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway), Elliott was the only repeat winner. He earned the popular home track victory at Atlanta in July and backed that up with a playoff win at Talladega in October. The driver of the No. 9 led the series with five top-10 finishes and two stage wins in those six events and paced the field for 166 laps (second to only teammate William Byron).
HE’S COMING HOME: 2020 Cup Series champion crew chief Alan Gustafson will make his return home to the "World Center of Racing" for the DAYTONA 500. Gustafson grew up in Ormond Beach, Florida, just down the road from the legendary superspeedway. After graduating from Seabreeze High School, Gustafson enrolled at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University to study mechanical engineering. This year marks his 19th season as a crew chief and his eighth year with Elliott.
MOST POLES: Gustafson leads all active crew chiefs with four DAYTONA 500 poles. He’s tied with Leonard Wood and Waddell Wilson for the most DAYTONA 500 poles overall. Gustafson won three straight from 2015-2017, with Jeff Gordon taking the top spot in 2015 and Elliott following suit the following two years. His first DAYTONA 500 pole came with Mark Martin in 2010.
NEW YEAR, SAME FACES: In 2023, the No. 9 pit crew will remain the same as it has since 2018. The 2021 Mechanix Wear Most Valuable Pit Crew award-winning group is comprised of Chad Avrit (rear-tire changer), Jared Erspamer (tire carrier), John Gianninoto (fueler), Nick O'Dell (front-tire changer) and T.J. Semke (jackman).
NAPA RETURNS FOR 500: For the eighth consecutive year, NAPA Auto Parts will kick off the Cup Series season on the hood of Elliott’s No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for the DAYTONA 500. Elliott has never started the “The Great American Race” without primary sponsorship from the Atlanta-based company. This marks the 10th season NAPA has partnered with Elliott in his NASCAR career. Check out this year's primary paint scheme here.
RACEDAY APPEARANCES: On Sunday, Elliott will stop by the Fan Zone in the infield for a Q&A session at 11:05 a.m. ET before heading out to the Team Chevy display at 11:30 a.m. ET. Also making an appearance at the Team Chevy display throughout the weekend – and all season long – is the 2023 No. 9 LLumar Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 show car.
DOUBLE-DUTY: In addition to competing in Sunday’s DAYTONA 500, Elliott will make his superspeedway debut in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race on Friday evening. He’ll drive the No. 35 Chevrolet Silverado RST with associate sponsorship from long-time partner NAPA Auto Parts. |
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