Persistent rain around the 1.058-mile track in Loudon, N.H., on Saturday forced the cancelation of Saturday’s qualifying session.
The field for Sunday’s race was set by the NASCAR performance metric, which is based in large part on the driver’s most recent finishing position and his team’s rank in owner points.
New Hampshire has been a difficult track for Elliott since he entered the Cup series. In 10 series starts, he has three top-10 finishes, with a best finish of second in the 2022 season, the year he won his first Cup championship.
“I think that’s exciting. I think that’s okay, too, because it is only halfway through the year,” Elliott said. “As we all know, the way this playoff situation is now, you want to be good those last 10 (races), and really good in the last five.
“The trick is being good enough to get to the Round of 8 and really try to be spectacular those last three or four weeks. So, it’s really just about having a solid enough base to get you through there and really trying to hit home runs in those last few races.”
Elliott will have some familiar company at the front of the field.
