Elliott's season got sidelined early last year for six races when he suffered a broken leg in a snowboarding accident. Later in the year, he was suspended by NASCAR for one race for intentionally wrecking Denny Hamlin in the Coca-Cola 600.
Elliott, 28, failed to win a race or make the playoffs. He finished the year 17th in the series standings – lowest of his eight full-time seasons.
The son of former Cup champion Bill Elliott still earned his sixth consecutive most popular driver title and remains confident he begins the 2024 season with a team firmly behind him.
“I feel like our team is in a good place. When you have a year like last year, it is really easy for a team to blow up from the inside. Really easy. You don’t know how easy,” Elliott said during Wednesday’s Daytona 500 Media Day.
“When I look at where our team is at mentally, our drive and our will, and our willingness to fight and not quit, I think it’s at an all-time high to be honest with you. My relationship with Alan (Gustafson, crew chief) is as good as it’s ever been.
“I’m just super proud of those things regardless of how the season goes, because I work with a group of guys who don’t want to give up on me. I don’t want to give up on them.”
Asked if there was a time last season when he thought his team could “blow up,” Elliott was adamant in his response.
“No, I truly didn’t,” he said. “I’ve just watched enough of that happen over the years, and people jump ship on each other, and think the grass is greener elsewhere, I’ve seen enough of that to know how it works.
“But, no, that was not the case for us and has not been through the winter.”
Still, Elliott knows the difficult 2023 season provides ammunition for those who may question his focus or commitment.
In fact, he refuses to lay any blame for last year’s performance struggles on the issues that kept him out of his car.
“Yeah, I was fine (after his return). My injuries were not why we struggled, for sure,” Elliott said.
Asked if he could pinpoint any specific area, he said only, “I just think I have some bad habits that this car doesn’t like, and I have to address it ultimately.”
Standing together
Elliott said he is inspired by his team’s desire to stand behind him in an effort to return them to the race and championship-winning form to which they become accustomed.
In the three seasons prior to last year, Elliott won 12 races, a championship and didn’t finish worse than fourth in the standings.
“That, to me, means a lot when you go to war every week (with a team) that has no desire to quit. It speaks volumes,” he said. “That, in my opinion, is a huge hurdle in trying to get back to where we think we can be and where I feel where we belong.
“We always want to do good. Our fire shouldn’t be in question. We might be frustrated or in a bad mood some days, but it’s because we want to do well, not for any other reason.”
