{"id":219,"date":"2016-09-18T18:14:28","date_gmt":"2016-09-18T22:14:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonmotorsport.com\/?p=219"},"modified":"2016-09-18T18:14:28","modified_gmt":"2016-09-18T22:14:28","slug":"martin-truex-jr-wins-chase-opener","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2016\/09\/18\/martin-truex-jr-wins-chase-opener\/","title":{"rendered":"Martin Truex Jr. Wins Chase Opener; Chase Elliott Comes Up Short"},"content":{"rendered":"

As the\u00a0Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 400<\/strong> at\u00a0Chicagoland Speedway<\/strong> comes to a close, the\u00a0NASCAR Chase for the Sprint Cup<\/strong> has begun.\u00a0Furniture Row Racing\u00a0<\/strong>driver\u00a0Martin Truex Jr.\u00a0<\/strong>wins Chase opener in a late dash to the finish line.\u00a0Hendrick Motorsports<\/strong> rookie\u00a0Chase Elliott<\/strong> suffers a heartbreaking loss, extending the Hendrick losing streak to 22 races.<\/p>\n

Martin Truex Jr. Wins Chase Opener; Chase Elliott Comes Up Short<\/h2>\n

The Finish<\/h3>\n

Rookie driver Chase Elliott dominated much of the second half of the race along with teammate\u00a0Jimmie Johnson<\/strong>. Former 24 driver and car-owner\u00a0Jeff Gordon<\/strong> stood atop Elliott’s pit-box in anticipation of a dominant victory. Martin Truex Jr. had closed Elliott’s lead to one second by 10 laps to go. With five laps to go, the right front tire of\u00a0Michael McDowell\u00a0<\/strong>blew out. The incident strew debris on the racetrack, some of which was run over by Truex.<\/p>\n

McDowell’s tire drew the caution, bringing the race leaders to pit road. Chase Elliott’s rear tire changer stumbled, dropping the tire and slowing the stop. The blunder brought Elliott out of pit road second, behind Truex. Fellow rookie driver\u00a0Ryan Blaney<\/strong> opted to stay out of pit road, followed by\u00a0Kasey Kahne\u00a0<\/strong>and\u00a0Carl Edwards<\/strong>. As the green flag flew with three laps remaining, Truex quickly overtook those who stayed out to climb from fourth to first in one lap. Martin Truex Jr. wins Chase opener, securing his spot in the next round of the Chase.<\/p>\n

Hendrick Woes Continue<\/h3>\n

Hendrick Motorsports came to the opening round of the Chase for the Sprint Cup on a 21-race losing streak. They leave Chicagoland speedway with a 22-race losing streak. This is their longest losing streak since their 1994 losing streak of 22 races. It seemed as though they were set to break that streak today. Jimmie Johnson dominated much of the race, but was penalized on pit road. Chase Elliott then seemed the likely victor, until pit road issues and a late caution squandered his chances as well.<\/p>\n

Although his first win still\u00a0eludes him, Chase Elliott retains a positive spirit towards the remainder of the Chase. The rookie driver leaves Chicagoland sixth on the Chase grid after being one of the drivers to race in on points. The 20-year old rookie told NBCSN “We were fast and that\u2019s something to be happy about”. The 24 team finished the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 400 in third. The last Hendrick Motorsports victory remains the\u00a0Auto Club 400<\/strong> in March.<\/span><\/p>\n

Chase Grid<\/h3>\n
    \n
  1. \u00a0Martin Truex Jr.<\/li>\n
  2. Brad Keselowski<\/li>\n
  3. Kyle Busch<\/li>\n
  4. Denny Hamlin<\/li>\n
  5. Joey Logano<\/li>\n
  6. Chase Elliott<\/li>\n
  7. Matt Kenseth<\/li>\n
  8. Jimmie Johnson<\/li>\n
  9. Carl Edwards<\/li>\n
  10. Kurt Busch<\/li>\n
  11. Jamie McMurray<\/li>\n
  12. Tony Stewart<\/li>\n
  13. Austin Dillon<\/li>\n
  14. Kevin Harvick<\/li>\n
  15. Kyle Larson<\/li>\n
  16. Chris Buescher<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
    \n
    Embed from Getty Images<\/a><\/div>\n