Elliott takes Nationwide points lead into his home race

Aug 30, 2014 - 3:16 PM Hampton, GA (SportsNetwork.com) - Chase Elliott has been looking forward to Saturday night's Nationwide Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway for quite some time.

Elliott, the 18-year-old son of 1988 NASCAR Cup Series champion Bill Elliott, is a rookie in Nationwide this year. He's also the current points leader.

With 10 races to go, Elliott holds a 13-point advantage over second-place and JR Motorsports teammate Regan Smith.

Elliott hails from Dawsonville, Georgia, which is about 85 miles north of this 1.54-mile racetrack.

This will be the first time Elliott competes in a NASCAR national touring series race at Atlanta.

"It's always exciting to race around home, and anytime you can do that, it's definitely one of the places you want to shine," Elliott said. "There's no question this is one of the dates I've been most excited for all season long. Who doesn't want to do well in front of their friends and family? I'm really looking forward to the weekend. This will be big."

Elliott's father won a Cup Series race at Atlanta five times. He clinched his '88 championship with an 11th-place finish in the season-finale here. In 1992, Elliott won the fall race at this track but lost the series title by 10 points to Alan Kulwicki, who finished second and led the most laps.

In 23 Nationwide races this season, Elliott has scored three wins (tied for series-most), 10 top-five finishes and 17 top-10s. Two of his victories have occurred on 1.5-mile tracks (Texas and Chicago).

Forty teams are on the entry list for the Great Clips 300. Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick, Matt Kenseth, Kyle Larson, Joey Logano and David Ragan are those Sprint Cup Series regulars scheduled to compete in this race. Harvick won this event one year ago.

Series: NASCAR Nationwide. Date: Saturday, Aug. 30. Race: Great Clips 300. Site: Atlanta Motor Speedway. Track: 1.54-mile oval. Start time: 7:30 p.m. ET. Laps: 195. Miles: 300.3. 2013 Winner: Kevin Harvick. Television: ESPN2. Radio: Performance Racing Network (PRN)/SIRIUS NASCAR Radio.