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Off to disappointing start, Chase Elliott takes blame for crash: ‘Terrible job on my behalf’

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Kobalt 400

LAS VEGAS, NV - MARCH 06: Matt Kenseth, driver of the #20 DeWalt Toyota, spins along with Kurt Busch, driver of the #41 Monster Energy / Haas Automation Chevrolet, and Chase Elliott, driver of the #24 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet, during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Kobalt 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 6, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images)

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Chase Elliott’s rookie season in the Sprint Cup Series took another rough turn Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and the Hendrick Motorsports took all the blame.

Elliott’s No. 24 Chevrolet plowed into Matt Kenseth’s No. 20 Toyota after Kenseth lost the handle and slid up the track with fewer than 45 laps remaining in the Kobalt 400.

“Just disappointing,” Elliott, who had run in the top five, told Fox Sports. “What a fast race car. I appreciate everybody working hard. I feel like we made a lot of gains this weekend. Just a terrible job on my behalf. That is pitiful.

“We have run three races and finished one. Just a bad job on my end. I ought to know better to miss a wreck like that.”

Asked if there was anything he could have done to avoid the wreck, Elliott responded, “Yeah, got off the brake and missed it.”

The crash ensured Elliott would finish outside the top 35 in his third start of the season. He finished 37th in the season-opening Daytona 500, crashing after starting from the pole position. Elliott rebounded for an eighth last week at Atlanta Motor Speedway.