DAWSONVILLE, Ga. (February 2, 2010) - Chase Elliott kicked off his sophomore season with a strong sixth-place finish in the No. 9 Aaron's Dream Machine Ford during the CRA SpeedFest 250 at Lanier National Speedway (Braselton, Ga.). Fourteen-year-old Elliott started seventh in the 31-car field and battled handling issues throughout the 250-lapper but was able to hold on for a solid top-ten in his first showing this year.

"We practiced great, but the car fell off during qualifying and we struggled throughout the race," said Elliott. "But it was a great experience getting out on the track for the first time this year, racing against some really good drivers. I learned a lot and am really looking forward to this year."

After taking the green flag in seventh, Elliott settled into fifth as the top five spread out single file and slowly pulled away from the rest of the field. 

Elliott maintained his top-five running spot through three cautions and held off heavy pressure from the No. 110 of Ryan Blaney for several laps.  But on lap 84, Blaney was able to sneak the nose of his machine to the inside of Elliott through turns three and four.  By lap 85, Blaney cleared the No. 9 and Elliott fell into sixth place.

After radioing to his crew that the car was suffering handling issues through the turns, Elliott was looking forward to the halfway break to give the Aaron's Dream Machine team the chance to make necessary adjustments. 

Following a restart on lap 110, Elliott got hung up on the outside of the lapped car No. 7. Five laps into the green flag run, the No. 7 moved up to the high line and in front of Elliott, allowing three cars to advance in the bottom line, bumping Elliott back to ninth where he would finish the first segment.

The field resumed green flag racing on lap 126, and Elliott narrowly avoided disaster three laps later when David Stremme and Joey Senter spun on the backstretch, right in front of the No. 9 Ford.  Elliott made his way around the scuffle and moved into eighth for the restart.

Elliott patiently worked his way through lap traffic as positions shuffled on the board among lead lap cars.  On lap 154, Elliott moved around the No. 82 and back into eighth.  By lap 161, Elliott caught the No. 151 machine and raced side-by-side before clearing him on lap 166 to take over seventh.

As the laps ticked off, Elliott continued to maneuver through traffic, maintaining his position on the leader board for 13 laps before Jeff Fultz moved the No. 67 around Elliott to take over seventh.  Elliott's spotter and father, Bill Elliott, radioed to his son to tuck in behind the veteran and follow Fultz to the front.

Elliott did just that as he moved around lapped cars and closed the gap to sixth place Bubba Pollard until the end of the 59-lap green flag run, the longest of the event, when Cale Gale spun from the fifth position to bring out a caution on lap 198. 

Still battling handling issues and with only three cars behind Elliott on the lead lap, the Aaron's Dream Machine team contemplated pitting under caution but opted to stay out.  Elliott lined up seventh, ahead of the three cars that pitted, and alongside five lapped cars on the inside to take the green flag on lap 207.

Seven laps later, Senter stopped the No. 12 high in turn four, bringing out the caution and moving Elliott into sixth place as Senter dropped onto pit road.

Elliott restarted in sixth and held off pressure from the No. 08.  Elliott made his way around lapped traffic and caught the rear bumper of Pollard by lap 243 and worked to set him up for a pass that would move him into fifth.

Five laps later, Blaney spun the No. 110 to bring out the final yellow.  The caution, which set up a green-white-checkered finish, was both a blessing and a curse for Elliott.  He moved into the top-five as Blaney went to the pits, but the caution also halted Elliott's run on Pollard and brought the No. 08 to Elliott's rear bumper as the field lined up single-file with no lapped cars to the inside for the final restart on lap 248.

The field took the green for the final two laps, and Elliott had his hands full.  Pollard was able to inch away from the No. 9 as he fought to hold off the No. 08 and defend his place in the top-five.  Elliott did all he could, but the No. 08 snuck a nose under the No. 9 and inched ahead at the line, bumping Elliott to sixth place in his first race of the 2010 season. 

NASCAR drivers Kyle Busch (51) and Steve Wallace (5) finished first and second, followed by Jeff Fultz (67), Bubba Pollard (18), Drew Brannon (08), Chase Elliott (9), Donnie Wilson (82), Cale Gale (14), Bobby Gill (151), and Johanna Long (10) to round out the top-ten for SpeedFest 2010.

Next up on Elliott's schedule is The Rattler 250, a CRA-sanctioned event at South Alabama Speedway (Opp), March 5-7.  The 34th annual event is expected to draw some of the best Super Late Model talent.  This will mark Elliott's first attempt at The Rattler and his second start at the 4/10 mile asphalt oval.

For the most up-to-date Chase Elliott news, including announcements about 2010, the official Chase Elliott Fan Club, his racing schedule and weekly podcast, please visit www.ChaseElliott.com.