Chase Elliott shows off ‘Awesome’ Darlington throwback scheme

RELATED: All Darlington throwback schemes Hendrick Motorsports revealed Chase Elliott’s 2017 Darlington throwback paint scheme on Thursday evening, and, boy, is it awesome. The No. 24 Chevrolet driver will honor his father, "Awesome" Bill Elliott, when the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series takes to the track for the Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway on Sept. 3 (6 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). The 21-year-old’s ride will be painted with a powder blue base and royal blue NAPA logo -- the same colors his father ran in his premier series debut at Rockingham Speedway in 1976.

The younger Elliott’s only two Monster Energy Series starts at the “Lady in Black” were polar opposites -- a 41st-place finish after a crash in one of a handful of starts he made in 2015, the other a top-10 result in his official rookie season last year. Elliott owns an XFINITY Series win at Darlington from his championship season in 2014. MORE: Bill Elliott through the years His 2016 scheme was a yellow-and-black nod to his sponsor, NAPA, which was celebrating 90 years of business. This season marks the third year that Darlington will host a throwback-themed Southern 500 event. This year’s event will focus on the 1985-1989 era, considered a time of growth and exposure for the sport. [gallery_content baseUrl="https://www.nascar.com" galleryID="1188" photocount="3"]