Hendrick Motorsports is adding a fifth race in its NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule for the 2023 season.
The No. 17 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro is set to compete at Pocono Raceway on Saturday, July 22. Chase Elliott will be behind the wheel at the 2.5-mile track in Pennsylvania.
Elliott won the 2014 Xfinity Series championship with Hendrick Motorsports affiliate JR Motorsports. He has five victories in the series (all with JRM), with the most recent coming in 2016 at Daytona International Speedway. In 82 Xfinity Series starts, he also has 34 top-five finishes, 66 top-10s, two poles and 689 laps led.
The start at Pocono will be Elliott’s first in the division in nearly two years. He is also the most recent NASCAR Cup Series winner at the “Tricky Triangle.”
In the No. 17 team’s first start in 2023, William Byron finished second at Circuit of The Americas. In June. Kyle Larson earned the pole position and won both stages before placing third at Sonoma Raceway. As previously announced in March, Alex Bowman will drive the car at Watkins Glen International on Aug. 19 and Larson will be back for the Sept. 2 race at Darlington Raceway. Veteran crew chiefs Greg Ives and Kevin Meendering will oversee the effort.
The No. 17 car number carries a rich history and special significance to organization. NASCAR Hall of Famer Darrell Waltrip drove it to nine Cup Series wins for the team from 1987 to 1990, including in the 1989 DAYTONA 500. The car number was also driven by Ricky Hendrick in various races, including in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series in 2000 and 2001. This year, the HendrickCars.com paint scheme will again be based on the No. 17 truck driven by Hendrick during his 2001 rookie season.
In its history, Hendrick Motorsports has won one Xfinity Series championship and earned 26 wins in the series. The organization’s four races in 2022 marked its first action in the series since 2009 when Tony Stewart took home the checkered flag at Daytona International Speedway. In its six combined races in the series in 2022 and 2023, the No. 17 team has three poles, three runner-up finishes, five top-fives and 125 laps led.
Tune in to watch Elliott compete in the No. 17 Chevy at Pocono’s Xfinity race on Saturday, July 22, at 5:30 p.m. ET on USA Network, NBC Sports App, MRN Radio and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90).
