For the past eight seasons, Chase Elliott has been behind the wheel of the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, having first joined the NASCAR Cup Series with the No. 25 before taking on the No. 24. 

Switching to the No. 9 was arguably written in the stars, allowing the younger Elliott to follow in his legendary father Bill’s footsteps, after he won the 1988 Cup Series crown in the No. 9 Melling Racing Ford.

In a recent interview, 2020 champion Chase, detailed how the change came about, with both Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Richard Petty having played major parts in the move. 

Subsequently, Earnhardt was asked for his side of the story during the latest ‘Dale Jr. Download’ podcast, prompting a trip down memory lane from the Hall of Famer. 

“I went to Chase, and I just said, ‘Hey man, if you wanted to change, you better do it soon. You’re building some equity with this 24, but it’s not too late to change and it not be like a kind of an awkward thing,’” Earnhardt recalled.

Sign up to our NASCAR newsletter here.

“So he’s like, ‘Oh no, I ain’t going to ask for that. I’m okay.’ And I’m like, ‘Well, would you want to?’ He goes, ‘Yeah, I would, but I’m okay.’ And so I mean, he’s young, he’s only in like year two. 

“And so I went to Rick [Hendrick] and I said, ‘Rick,’ I said, ‘Man, I was like, I got an idea that I think would be a pretty big deal.’ I was like, ‘An Elliott in the number nine is a big win for everybody.’”

Despite initial hesitance, especially with the team’s desire to expand upon the No. 24’s legacy as built by Jeff Gordon, Earnhardt persisted. Earnhardt went on to point out to Hendrick how much it would mean to fans to see another Elliott behind the wheel of the No. 9, noting how he could end up running the number for the next two decades, “Racking up more equity in the number and this, the history of the number.”

DON’T MISS…

Earnhardt’s sweet talking seemed to do the trick, opening the door for Chase to speak with Hendrick about the potential switch, which he believed “down in there somewhere that that’s really truly what [Chase] wanted, but he didn’t want to disappoint Jeff and Rick.”

The move ultimately worked out for all involved, with Chase having gone on to write his own chapter in the history of the No. 9. To date, Chase has racked up 20 wins and 184 top 10s in 349 Cup Series races, using the No. 24, 25, and 9.

Meanwhile, William Byron joined Hendrick in 2018, taking over behind the wheel of the historic No. 24, which Gordon had previously driven to four Cup Series titles and 93 race wins. And while Byron may not have a championship to his name just yet, he has added plenty to the No. 24’s story, winning 15 races and reaching the top 10 on 117 occasions in 279 races.