It isn’t often that Chase Elliott makes public requests of the media and fans. On Saturday at Watkins Glen, that’s exactly what he did. Elliott stumped for his uncle, Ernie Elliott, to be voted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame for the Class of 2027.
One of the downsides of the NASCAR Hall of Fame is the lack of attention non-drivers get. Of course, the heroes are almost all the men and women behind the wheel. But there are so many others behind-the-scenes and under the hood that deserve to be in as well.
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Perhaps Chase Elliott’s uncle Ernie is one of those people. An engine builder, Ernie is perhaps one of the most overlooked and underappreciated pieces of the Elliott family NASCAR story. While he had media attention, Chase made his case to both the potential voters in the media room and the fans at home.
Chase Elliott celebrates his win at Martinsville. Photo by David Jensen/Getty Images
“You know I know there’s a lot of very deserving names on the ballot and nominated, I know some of you guys in the room are probably on the panel and vote and all those things,” Elliott explained after questions were over with in his press conference. “I know, I’m not sure if a lot of the fans know this, but they also count for a vote as well, from a fan vote online. I think it’s important for people to talk about that. I would be remiss to not talk about my uncle Ernie who was nominated and on the ballot.
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“You know, I don’t talk about stuff like this a lot, but you don’t have to dig very far into the Elliott racing story to recognize one, how much of a family effort it was, how much of a team effort it was. And I don’t think you’d find anybody in the group that would tell you the story has the same ending today throughout the course of the 80s, even leading into my career that looks the same without uncle Ernie and what he meant to all of us. You know, and I think from my perspective, he means a lot to me personally, he’s meant a lot to my career. He was building engines for our race cars, you know, racing super late model races and all those things.”
Chase Elliott is not just the Most Popular Driver. He isn’t just Bill Elliott’s kid. He truly loves and cares for NASCAR, not just what he’s doing in the sport, but the history behind it. When it comes to his family history, it is not surprise the man who still lives in Dawsonville would be proud to tell that story, and make the request to voters.
“So, just very grateful for him and just wanted to, I’m biased, but I wanted to at least express how much of an important role he had on my dad’s career and the things and the success that they had, I don’t think would have been the same without him and I don’t know if everybody totally understands that,” Elliott continued.
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“I get to have a lot of really cool conversations with him on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and Mondays throughout the week about things he was doing to the 85 Winston Million engine or the 87 Daytona 500 engine that you guys will never hear and I take those things for granted, but I think they would blow you mind. About the ingenuity and the things he brought to the table for them was really second to none. So just, yeah. Wanted to make it a point to say that while I had an opportunity.”
This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on May 9, 2026, where it first appeared in the Racing section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
