Hendrick Motorsports with nightmare starting positions for Chicago Street Race

If you are a Hendrick Motorsports fan, I hope you like to watch your drivers work hard, because they are going to be on Sunday. All four Hendrick cars are making adjustments after qualifying, and all four will start in the rear of Sunday’s NASCAR field as a result.

Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, William Byron, and Alex Bowman are all going to the rear. Larson took damage in qualifying. Bowman had to change out a toe link. Elliott and Byron didn’t even make a qualifying lap!

This is a nightmare situation for Hendrick Motorsports. Honestly, their hopes of winning could be over before the race even started.

What’s that @Drake line about starting from the bottom again?

Unfortunately, due to needed repairs, all four cars will start tomorrow’s race from the back. pic.twitter.com/FaxmIcGLyJ

— Hendrick Motorsports (@TeamHendrick) July 5, 2025

The Hendrick Motorsports organization has to be wondering what they did to deserve this. You just don’t see four cars from the same team all have issues like this. With how much track position matters, Sunday is going to be more than challenging for these drivers and teams.

Chase Elliott is coming off his win at Atlanta. He could have been a contender for Sunday. Depending on how the race plays out, he still might be a contender, but it will be a monumental task. Shane van Gisbergen is on the pole, and he won’t make anything easy for anyone on the track.

The Chicago Street Race can be tricky. Tight braking zones, tough corners to set up and exit. There are many places for these drivers to make mistakes on the track. Having to push it 100% the entire race to go from the back to the front will take a perfect race.

Hendrick Motorsports will have four chances

If you’re Hendrick, you at least get four opportunities to do this. All four drivers are in the rear for the race, all four have a chance to make the impossible happen and drive to the front to win this race. Will it happen? Not likely. But there is a slim chance.

While today’s Xfinity Series race is bright, sunny, hot, and beautiful, tomorrow’s Cup Series race could be different. Sunday is going to be cooler and cloudy. There could also be rain at some point during the race. Wet-weather tires would open this race up for Hendrick.

The Chicago Street Race demands perfection. Qualifying, pit stops, and making each corner. The walls on the left and right are unforgiving. Hendrick Motorsports will start the day on Sunday behind the ball but could make something special happen.