NASCAR: Chase Elliott to miss Las Vegas race after snowboarding accident

Chase Elliott will miss Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Las Vegas.

While this is very much a still-developing story, 2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion Chase Elliott will miss Sunday’s race at Las Vegas after he sustained a leg injury in a snowboarding accident in Colorado.

More specific details have not yet been made public, but this is a concerning development for Elliott, who is a regular contender for the Cup championship.

In Elliott’s place, Josh Berry, a full-time driver in the Xfinity Series, will fill in for at least the upcoming race.

Elliott, 27, finished 38th in the season-opening Daytona 500 and rebounded in a big way last week, finishing second in the Fontana race to Kyle Busch.

NASCAR: Chase Elliott to miss Las Vegas race with injury

Since becoming a full-time Cup Series driver in 2016, the Dawsonville, Georgia native has not missed a single race. While there is a concern about how soon he can return to the car to contend for the championship, his health is obviously the most important thing right now.

Even if he does miss multiple races, past situations similar to this have shown that there is still hope.

In 2015, Kyle Busch missed the first 11 races of the season after being seriously injured in the Xfinity Series season opener that year. What did he do when he came back? Oh, nothing. Just won five races and won the championship.

In Berry, 32, Hendrick Motorsports will be getting a highly talented driver who has yet to receive much of a look in the Cup Series. Last year was his first full-time effort in the Xfinity Series and saw him win four races and finish fourth in the standings.

His Cup Series career consists of 30th-place finish in 2021 at Dover and a 26th-place finish at Michigan later that same year.

The expectations for Berry are likely going to be pretty low for the race at Vegas. While he will be driving one of the strongest cars in the field, he does not have much experience in a Cup car. However, the fact that he will be in the Xfinity race on Saturday works in his favor as he will be getting extra time on the track.