Chase Elliott Gets HMS Back on Track

Hey NASCAR Fans,

There’s been a lot of talk about HMS’s slow start to the season. The new Chevy body and Toyota’s rapid surge made things tricky for them to find their footing. However, after Sunday’s race, we can rightly say they are back in the mix as top contenders. And surprisingly, it is Chase Elliott who is leading this charge so far.

The late-race tussle between Elliott and Denny Hamlin was the major highlight. But some notable moments also deserve your attention.

Chase Elliott wasn’t a clear favorite to win the Würth 400 race at Texas Motor Speedway. The usual suspects were leading the charge. Denny Hamlin and Christopher Bell, in their JGR Toyotas, were setting the pace after the first green-flag stops of the race. This was an important race for Bell, who had a shaky start to 2026, but he got caught up in a mess with 13 laps to go in Stage 1.

With multiple single-car crashes and the pit road chaos, Elliott found his way up the field, tailing Corey Heim, who was looking for a lucky caution that never came. After bagging the Stage 2 win, the HMS driver created a gap between himself and the chasers. Tyler Reddick surged up top and looked like a genuine threat. But a caution with 11 laps to go forced everyone to make a tactical choice. Both Hamlin and Elliott decided to bank on track position, whereas Reddick opted for two tires.

The race went green again with 4 to go, and Hamlin opted to choose the high lane rather than starting behind the No. 9 car. But this backfired when Alex Bowman gave his teammate a good push, and he held off Hamlin by the exit of Turns 1 and 2. From there on, Elliott just cruised to a win. There was a moment’s hiccup when the No. 42 car spun, but the race remained green, allowing the HMS driver to bag his second Cup Series win of 2026. Here’s a quick recap of the race-deciding final laps.

Interestingly, Texas is the same track where Elliott ended his 42-race winless streak two years ago. But now, with two wins in the early half of the season, he has emerged as HMS’s top pick as a title contender. Yet even in victory, the Dawsonville native acknowledged the help he got from his teammate. “Fortunately, Alex gave me a great push. Was able to execute Turns 1 and 2, get clear, and then just kind of manage the last few laps… Yeah, man, just crazy.”

With the momentum back with the #9 team and HMS finding their way around the new Chevy body, this result could be a turning point for the entire organization. And for the fans, it means more competitive racing.

Everything’s bigger in Texas, they say, and that set the tone for the race right from the beginning. Slayer’s Tom Araya giving the command for the race was supposed to be the big moment before the racing began. But instead, a 100-year-old veteran outshone Araya with his performance, singing the national anthem.

Corporal Don Graves, a U.S. Marine veteran, delivered one of the finest national anthem performances race fans have witnessed in some time. This was a special moment for the fans and the entire Cup grid. Even the fireworks and the flyby didn’t bother Graves as he performed his duties for the NASCAR event. You can listen to this inspiring performance here.

What followed next was perhaps the most hilarious moment of Sunday. NBA rookie Cooper Flagg was the honorary pace car driver of the race. But he didn’t have a clue what he had signed up for. Before the pace laps, Denny Hamlin, Cooper, and Conor Zilisch agreed on giving the pace car a bump while running the laps. It sounded like a joke at that moment, but Hamlin wasn’t kidding around.

Once the pace car started running laps, Hamlin, who was positioned in the second row, jumped up front and ran the pace car up the racetrack. That wasn’t it; the JGR driver then gave the pace car a good old bump that almost knocked off the rear camera. Even the folks up in the FOX booth couldn’t control their laughter after watching this stunt by Hamlin.

Well, it looks as if HMS is finally turning a corner for good. Three of the four HMS Chevrolet’s finishing inside the Top 10 at Texas is a big moment. Unfortunately, the fourth car that didn’t make it was Kyle Larson's. The winless streak for the driver of the No. 5 car continues, and even when he had a decent race, an unfortunate crash on Lap 160 just made things worse for him. 

After two Top 5 finishes, Larson now has two consecutive race results with 34th or worse. He has dropped to eighth in the leaderboards, and the lack of a race win is really starting to weigh on the entire team.

This wasn’t an ordinary Texas race; with the stage 2 chaos and last-minute tactics into play, it was hard to make the picks for this weekend.

Despite the curveballs the race threw, we have our winner.

This week’s ultimate bragging rights go to: Kevin!

You take home a $25 Amazon gift card, while other notable finishers also get a spot on our weekly leaderboard.

Next up, we have the road course race at Watkins Glen, so come prepared for the next prediction challenge.

Sunday’s Results: 86% of you agreed that Wrüth 400 was a good race — Click here to read what you and other fans thought about it.

Team Penske drivers took a tumble in the points standings, whereas the race for the top 3 spot intensifies after Texas. Check out the updated leaderboard standings after the Texas race here.

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