Elliott, the sport’s most popular driver, missed six races after suffering a fractured tibia in his left leg in a snowboarding accident on March 3.
He returned to action last weekend at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway and rallied from a slow start to finish 10th.
Although technically it is possible for Elliott, 27, to still claim one of the 16 playoff spots by points, it would be exceedingly difficult.
A victory in the any of the 17 remaining race in the regular season should ensure Elliott will once again have a chance to compete for the series championship.
“I think we’re a deserving team to be a part of the playoffs and I think we’re a strong enough team to make a run and race for a championship,” Elliott said Wednesday in a Zoom call with reporters.
“We all want to win as a group, it’s not because of my absence that we want to win any more than we already did. But we certainly recognize points are probably aren’t going to work from the driver’s side – certainly we could points-in from the owner’s side – but from a driver’s side, it’s going to be tough to do without out a win.”
Other than continuing to work to gain his strength back in his left leg, Elliott said he doesn’t expect any issues with competing in the weeks ahead.
Sunday’s race at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway is as good as any for Elliott to pick up his first win of the 2023 season. He owns two career wins at the track, including a victory last October that helped propel him through the playoffs.
Elliott has also performed well at Dover (Del.) Motor Speedway, site of next week’s race. In 12 starts at Dover, he has nine top-five finishes and a pair of victories, with the most recent coming last spring.
Elliott said neither he nor his team is shying away from the challenge they face as basically restart their season.
“I think it’s more just recognizing the job at hand and what we’re going to have to do to be a part of the show. Having that goal set in front of you I think is kind of fun,” Elliott said. “It’s very simple and pretty straightforward what we have to go do.
“We’re really embracing it as a group and I’ve embraced it on my end. I’m excited about the challenge, really. It’s kind of unique and fun – you either win and you’re in or you don’t and you fail.
“I kind of like it.”
