The rallycross bug seems to have bitten Chase Elliott enough for him to desire another run. On Thursday, Nitro Rallycross announced Elliott will rejoin the series for Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park on 12/13 November. He will drive an FC1-X in the Group E class for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing JC.
Elliott made his rallycross début in the 2021 season finale at the Florida International Rally and Motorsports Park, where he reached the final and finished eighth. While the NASCAR Cup Series points leader and 2020 champion is more renowned for his pavement racing, he has shown interest in dirt competition in recent times such as sprint cars and quarter midgets.
The Wild Horse Pass round is a week after the NASCAR Championship Weekend at Phoenix Raceway, which is located less than forty miles away. Fellow Cup driver Kyle Busch ran the 2021 Nitro RX race there in the same Supercar as Elliott.
“As we gear up for the U.S., we’re so excited to welcome back Chase Elliott for Phoenix,” said Nitro RX founder and former NASCAR driver Travis Pastrana. “Having a NASCAR Cup Series champion of Chase’s calibre return is so awesome, and it reaffirms our goal to challenge the best and most fearless drivers in motorsport while offering fans unparalleled racing excitement. But on race day, it’s absolutely game on for the checkered flag.”
It seemed to be only a matter of time before Elliott returned to Nitro RX. Nitro Rallycross owner Thrill One Sports & Entertainment signed a multi-year partnership with A SHOC Performance Energy in early 2022, and the energy drink brand has sponsored Elliott and his Cup team Hendrick Motorsports since 2021.
At the moment, Elliott is only committed to the Arizona round as it is the only American date on the 2022/23 calendar without scheduling conflicts with NASCAR (outside the United States, Saudi Arabia and Trois-Riviéres also do not clash).
“I’m so excited to bang doors again with Travis at Nitro Rallycross in Phoenix,” Elliott commented. “Last year was so much fun. I had a blast driving, the track was unreal. Flying over gap jumps definitely took some getting used to at first. But the thrill of putting your skills to the test on a course like this while competing against the best in rallycross is something I couldn’t get enough of.”
He will be joined at DRR JC by full-time competitors Andreas Bakkerud, Robin Larsson, and Fraser McConnell. Larsson and Bakkerud respectively won the first two races of the season at Lydden Hill and Strängnäs. Ole Christian Veiby and World Rallycross legend Johan Kristoffersson have also piloted Group E cars for the team.
