Hendrick Motorsports, along with the rest of the NASCAR fraternity, has embraced the format change with open arms, despite the team being one of the most successful teams during the three-race elimination period. They have won a total of four Cup titles, with Jimmie Johnson winning his seventh crown in 2016, Chase Elliott winning his first title in 2020, Kyle Larson winning his first title of 2021 in his debut campaign and his triumph last season, hoisting his second trophy.
Despite their performance during the elimination period, the team also proved their understanding of the Chase format, winning seven titles from 2004 to 2014, under the old Chase rules. Although the team knows how to succeed in both environments, Larson won both of his championships in eliminations alone. Still, his crew chief, Cliff Daniels, believes Chase’s reworked format for 2026 will serve Larson and company well this year.
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“Looking back at our 2025 season, a lot of what kept us in the title race in the regular season was the fact that we had some really good races until a mechanical failure or a late crash, where we scored a lot of stage points, and that kind of kept us in the race,” Daniels said.
“So we’ve been through it a little bit. We’ve seen it. And now, of course, it’s going to be more of a highlight of that, where you have to be there during the stages and put together a whole race. I think that’s going to benefit our team, and we just need to make sure that the way we strategize for our races, how we execute, that we get those points along the way,” he added.
We’ve often seen chaos ensue during a three-race elimination period, most notably when Larson himself managed to snatch the title from Denny Hamlin in the finale in Phoenix. However, with the adjustments made this year, some teams are better positioned to win the ultimate prize, according to Daniels, due to a larger sample size that will yield superior results and allow drivers to make a difference throughout the year, not in just one race.
However, another issue to note is that race winners now pocket 55 points instead of 40, increasing the value of victory despite the points-based structure. Pilot #5 is experiencing a 24-race winless drought on the year, his longest barren stretch since joining Hendrick Motorsports in 2021, but remains confident that he and his crew will soon visit victory lane, combining both winning speed and moderate consistency.
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Combined with the return of the Chase, Larson and his team harbor optimism for what awaits them in 2026. It remains to be seen how they fare in this Sunday’s Clash at Bowman Gray, if the weather allows the green flag to fly, of course.
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