Chase Elliott finished back-to-back NASCAR Cup Series races at the Michigan International Speedway in seventh and ninth place respectively, keeping him in fifth place in the series standings. 

This weekend’s doubleheader started on Saturday where Elliott earned himself the opportunity to win late in the race. NASCAR’s brand new “choose rule” implemented during the double header allows racers to pick which lane they want to restart in after a caution flag comes out. 

While Elliott was in second place pushing to pass leader Kevin Harvick, several caution flags came out forcing the racers to restart. Elliott chose to start behind Harvick on the second row of cars rather than start next to Harvick. 

But the strategy didn’t pay off for Elliott. After pushing on the back of Harvick to get him in front of the second place driver Denny Hamlin, Elliott was unable to draft and lost several spots, putting him in seventh place for the evening. 

Sunday’s race was not as competitive for Elliott. The Dawsonville based driver just barely missed the top ten in both stages, and failed to grab any extra stage points. 

With fellow driver Joey Logano only four points behind Elliott in the standings now, it’s now important for him to continue to push for stage points. 

Elliott was able to sneak his way into the top ten at the end of the race on Sunday. He ended up finishing in ninth place after Brad Keselowski ran into Ryan Blaney, after slamming both into a wall. Elliott is behind both drivers in the series standings. 

There are only four races left in the regular season. Since Elliott won the Alsco Uniforms 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway earlier this season, he has already clinched a spot in the 2020 playoffs. 

Playoff points are added to the racers overall points total and they acquire those points by winning stages and winning races overall. Elliott currently has ten extra playoff points, five for his race win and the other five from his five stage wins. 

This week will be the first time that NASCAR drivers have driven at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach this season. The GoBowling 235 will be at 3 p.m. on Sunday, August 16.