Chase Elliott 2019 season in review

After making a Round of 8 appearance for the third season in a row, Chase Elliott finished 10th in the final 2019 NASCAR Cup Series standings. Here are the highlights from his fourth full year racing in NASCAR’s premier division.

Elliott posted a career-high for laps led this season with 601, surpassing his previous mark of 560 set in 2017. His 5.9 percentage of laps led was the seventh-highest in the Cup Series.

He raced his way to four Busch Pole Awards, equalling his total in the three previous seasons combined. His first of the four came at Bristol in April.

In the first trip to Talladega, Elliott reeled in his first win of the season after the race ended under caution. After qualifying 11th, he went on to lead a race-high 45 laps and secure his first ever win at the track.

The following week at Dover, he led 145 laps in a top-five finish. The 145 laps led set a new best in one race, edging his previous best of 138 -- also at Dover -- achieved in 2017.

Elliott held off a hard-charging Martin Truex Jr. at Watkins Glen in a dominating performance for the second straight season. After starting on the pole, winning both stages and leading the most laps, Elliott became the only driver to accomplish the feat in 2019.

Perhaps the most memorable finish of his career came at the Roval in September’s playoff race. After crashing into the Turn 1 barrier on the Lap 65 restart, Elliott quickly regrouped to win and execute one of the most iconic celebrations in recent history.

Matching his 2018 total of three wins and 11 top fives, Elliott ended his playoff run in the Round of 8 once again. He finished highest among all Hendrick Motorsports drivers in the final standings.