Chase Elliott Ready for Cup Series Debut at Martinsville

Chase Elliott will make his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series debut in the No. 25 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet SS for Hendrick Motorsports this Sunday, March 29, at Martinsville Speedway. Team owner Rick Hendrick also made his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver debut in the No. 25 Chevrolet at Riverside International Raceway in 1987. Also, in 2008 at Texas Motor Speedway, Brad Keselowski debuted for Hendrick Motorsports in the No. 25 Chevrolet.

Elliott, at the age of 19 years, four months and one day, will become the 12th youngest NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver to debut in the sport this Sunday, March 29. He will be the youngest Cup driver to debut since Joey Logano at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on September 14, 2008, when he was 18 years, three months and 20 days young.

Although Elliott is making an attempt at his first Cup Series start Sunday, in two previous NASCAR Camping World Truck Series starts at Martinsville, Elliott completed 100 percent of his total laps run (450) with an average finish of 13th at the oldest and shortest (0.526-mile oval) in-use NASCAR facility. His Martinsville debut came April 6, 2013, in the Hendrick Motorsports-owned No. 94 Chevrolet, finishing sixth. His second attempt at the “paperclip” was Saturday, October 26, when he finished 20th.

NAPA AUTO PARTS will serve as Elliott’s primary sponsor on the No. 25 Chevrolet SS this Sunday. Coming off a championship season at JR Motorsports in which NAPA sponsored Elliott’s Chevrolet for all 33 races, it will continue to be the principal sponsor for Elliott for his four remaining Cup races at Hendrick Motorsports in 2015 (Saturday, April 25, at Richmond International Raceway; Sunday, May 24, at Charlotte Motor Speedway; Sunday, July 26, at Indianapolis Motor Speedway; and Sunday, September 6, at Darlington Raceway).