Elliott in must-win NASCAR playoff spot after Michigan wreck

Elliott, who missed several races earlier this season due to injury and a one-race suspension, was running seventh in Sunday’s race when he had a rear tire go down, spun and slammed into the Turn 2 wall.

The damage was so extensive to Elliott’s No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet that it knocked him out of the race, which left him with a 36th-place finish.

Elliott, 27, was still mathematically in contention to make the 16-driver playoffs on points coming into the weekend but needed a string of strong runs in the final four regular season races to do so.

That path became all-but eliminated with Sunday’s incident.

“I hate that happened. It’s really early in the day to have a tire blow like that, it’s really weird,” Elliott said. “Bummer, but not surprised.”

Chase Elliott, Hendrick Motorsports, NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet Camaro

Photo by: David Rosenblum / NKP / Motorsport Images

Elliott was among the teams that elected to remain on the track during the first caution rather than pit for new tires, but he did not believe that contributed to the issue.

“Not at all,” Elliott said when asked if there was any warning. “Obviously, we stayed out (on the first caution) but I didn’t feel like I was being hard on it.

“Yeah, unfortunately not. Just add it to the list.”

Elliott said his playoff situation never changed from that he believed was the case when he returned from his injury – that he would need to win.

“I told y’all that the week I got back,” he said.

With the road course at Watkins Glen, Indy and the superspeedway of Daytona still to go, Elliott certainly has favorable tracks ahead on which he could win his first race of the year and lock himself into the playoffs.