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Duck Commander 500: Chase Elliott to start from rear

Feb 13, 2016; Daytona Beach, FL, USA; NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Chase Elliott (24) sits in his car during practice for the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 13, 2016; Daytona Beach, FL, USA; NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Chase Elliott (24) sits in his car during practice for the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

Chase Elliott will have to start at the back when the Duck Commander 500 begins on Saturday night.

It will be tougher for Chase Elliott to win the Duck Commander 500 on Saturday night as he will begin the race in the back of the pack. This is due to being forced to change his transmission on Saturday ahead of Saturday’s race at Texas Motor Speedway.

Anytime a driver’s car is modified after qualifying and before the race begins, they are sent to the last row to start the race. The thinking from NASCAR is that a change to a car like an engine or transmission causes the car to be majorly changed and different than what the driver used to qualify. It’s the same reasoning when a driver destroys their car in qualifying and is forced to go to a back up vehicle.

The news for Elliott isn’t the best. He’s currently 16th in the Chase standings and has three top-10 finishes in six races this season. On Friday he qualified fourth, but will now be forced to the back row. Luckily, it’s a 1.5 mile long track in Texas, so he will have ample time to get near the leaders. However, he will have a lot more cars to navigate through than if he was starting in fourth.

Elliott’s team will have to be mistake-free on Saturday if there’s a chance for the 24 car to have any chance of winning the Duck Commander 500 at Texas Motor Speedway.

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