Ernie Elliott (right) celebrates with his brother, Bill Elliott, after winning the NASCAR Cup Series race at Darlington Raceway on April 14, 1985. Photo: ISC Images & Archives via Getty Images
Championship engine builder Ernie Elliott, an integral part of the career of his NASCAR Hall of Fame brother Bill Elliott, is the recipient of this year’s Smokey Yunick Award, bestowed annually by Charlotte Motor Speedway.
The Dawsonville, Georgia native scored two Daytona 500 wins with his brother, in 1985 and 1987, and the NASCAR Cup Series championship in 1988 serving as the crew chief and engine builder for the Harry Melling team that operated out of the north Georgia mountains. The team also won the inaugural Winston Million in 1985.
Elliott won 40 NASCAR Cup Series races as an engine builder, along with 51 poles. He was named Engine Builder of the Year in 1985, Engine Builder of the Decade for the 80s, and was inducted into the Georgia Racing Hall of Fame in 2010.
Created in 1997 to honor one of stock car racing’s legendary mechanics, the Smokey Yunick Award recognizes an individual from humble beginnings who has demonstrated exceptional innovation and made a major impact on the world of motorsports.
Chase Elliott, 2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion, accepted the award Saturday on behalf of his uncle.
“I’ve seen and talked to Uncle Ernie quite a lot,” Chase Elliott said. “He’s always a good person to talk to post-race. He pays a lot of attention… he doesn’t like to admit he pays a lot of attention, but he does.
“He’s been a great supporter of mine over the years. I have a ton of respect for him — just the innovation that he brought at the time period that he did. He was so far ahead of the curve in so many different ways, not only building engines and working on the cars…
“Back then, they didn’t have engineering and software to go through these things. A lot of it was trial-and error… he just did it his way.”
William Byron vs. William Byron
As the Round of 12 in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs nears conclusion on Sunday, NASCAR William Byron is less concerned about the opponents he sees on the race track than the driver he sees in the mirror.
“It’s definitely us against ourselves,” said Byron, who leads the series with six victories, the most recent of which — at Texas Motor Speedway — has propelled him into the Playoffs’ Round of 8.
“I feel like it’s us executing races. It’s us putting together good performances… top five performances that we know that we’re capable of.”
The Texas win allows Byron to concentrate on trying to maintain momentum in Sunday’s race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course.
“For us, it’s definitely going to be less stress,” said Byron, who will start 14th. “But once we get to the race track, we’re trying to win the race, so it’ll be stressful because of that.
“Qualifying here is tough because you can lock up tires and miss corners. There’s a lot of shifting, so it’s tough to get it all right. I feel like you can hit 90 percent of the track right and miss 10 percent, and that can be worth two or three-tenths (of a second).
“Last year, I looked at my qualifying, and I qualified second here. I just missed a little bit in (turns) 7, 8 and 9, the back chicane, and that was worth two-and-a-half tenths. Had a great lap going up until that point. It’s definitely a tough place.”
Kevin Harvick Isn’t Shedding Tears As Final Season Nears Its End
With a clear vision of his future in the racing industry, Kevin Harvick isn’t overcome with nostalgia as he visits each of the NASCAR Cup Series tracks for the last time as a driver.
Harvick, 47, who represents drivers and athletes from other sports on the management side, will move into the FOX Sports television booth as an analyst next season. Hence, his attitude toward his final season as a competitor isn’t that of a tearful departure.
“I’m excited for it to be over,” Harvick said before Saturday’s Cup practice at Charlotte Motor Speedway. “I think, as I go to each race track, it’s fun to be able to celebrate and do the things that you need to do, and I’m enjoying the time that I have with the guys and seeing and hearing what they’re going to do next and how things are going to shake out.
“For me, what’s it’s about is enjoying each week for different reasons, and we’re going to be heavily involved in the sport and the industry for a long time to come with several different aspects of it, so you try to take the driving thing and do what you’ve done for the last however many years – 22 years at the Cup level – and enjoy that part of it, but I think in my mind there’s just a tremendous amount of stuff that’s already happening for what we do going forward.
“But I’m not crying myself to sleep.”
NASCAR Cup Series
Charlotte Motor Speedway – Concord, NC
Bank of America ROVAL 400 – October 8, 2023
Sunday’s Starting Line Up
Pos Car Driver Team Time Speed
1. 45 Tyler Reddick (P) Jordan Brand Toyota 81.214 102.839
2. 20 Christopher Bell (P) DEWALT Plumbing Solutions Toyota 81.328 102.695
3. 99 Daniel Suarez Aguas Frescas Chevrolet 81.401 102.603
4. 23 Bubba Wallace (P) Leidos Toyota 81.428 102.569
5. 8 Kyle Busch (P) Lenovo Chevrolet 81.488 102.494
6. 16 A.J. Allmendinger Celsius Chevrolet 81.600 102.353
7. 22 Joey Logano Shell Pennzoil Ford 81.720 102.203
8. 9 Chase Elliott NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet 81.722 102.200
9. 11 Denny Hamlin (P) Mavis Tires & Brakes Toyota 0.000 0.000
10. 54 Ty Gibbs # Interstate Batteries All Battery Center Toyota 0.000 0.000
11. 19 Martin Truex, Jr. (P) Bass Pro Shops Toyota 81.178 102.885
12. 1 Ross Chastain (P) Worldwide Express Chevrolet 81.221 102.831
13. 34 Michael McDowell Love’s Travel Stops Ford 81.399 102.606
14. 24 William Byron (P) HP Chevrolet 81.608 102.343
15. 3 Austin Dillon Huk Performance Fishing Chevrolet 81.611 102.339
16. 48 Alex Bowman Ally Chevrolet 81.632 102.313
17. 12 Ryan Blaney (P) Discount Tire Ford 81.659 102.279
18. 41 Ryan Preece Autodesk/HaasTooling.com Ford 81.702 102.225
19. 6 Brad Keselowski (P) Castrol Edge Ford 81.707 102.219
20. 17 Chris Buescher (P) Fifth Third Bank Ford 81.790 102.115
21. 10 Aric Almirola IHOP Ford 81.800 102.103
22. 4 Kevin Harvick Rheem – Chasing a Cure Ford 81.801 102.101
23. 43 Erik Jones Allegiant Chevrolet 81.970 101.891
24. 7 Corey LaJoie Gainbridge Chevrolet 82.003 101.850
25. 31 Justin Haley LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet 82.024 101.824
26. 42 Mike Rockenfeller Sunseeker Resorts Chevrolet 82.036 101.809
27. 47 Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. Harris Teeter/Totino’s Chevrolet 82.048 101.794
28. 78 Josh Bilicki(i) Zeigler Auto Group Chevrolet 82.086 101.747
29. 2 Austin Cindric Menards/Cardell Cabinetry Ford 82.103 101.726
30. 14 Chase Briscoe Ford Performance Racing School Ford 82.156 101.660
31. 21 Harrison Burton Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford 82.184 101.626
32. 51 Todd Gilliland Ruedebusch Development & Construction 82.357 101.412
33. 62 Austin Hill(i) United Rentals/Beard Oil Chevrolet 82.529 101.201
34. 38. Zane Smith(i) Ambetter Health Ford 82.578 101.141
35. 15 Andy Lally(i) Camping World Ford 82.859 100.798
36. 5 Kyle Larson (P) Valvoline/HendrickCars.com Chevrolet 0.000 0.000
(i) Ineligible for driver points in this series
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