By Luis Torres, Staff Writer/Photographer
Calamity at World Wide Technology Raceway went hand-in-hand with the noun biting several competitors in Sunday’s Enjoy Illinois 300.
On a day that saw a track record 18 cautions and two red flags, brake issues were among the troubles for a few drivers, including Chase contenders Ryan Blaney and Chase Elliott.
Following back-to-back fourth-place stage finishes, Blaney was on his way to a strong points day in his bid for a second Bill France Trophy.
However, a brake failure cut Blaney’s afternoon short in the early portion of the final stage. The issue relegated him to a 35th place finish and became the second retiree of the race.
While running in sixth, Blaney was chasing down Denny Hamlin before his car wobbled after the brake rotor exploded and then hit the wall near the end of the frontstretch.
The wall impact forced him to go to the garage with pieces of the brake rotor falling out of the No. 12 Ford Mustang upon entry.
After two Chase races, Blaney dropped from third to fourth in the standings, 33 points behind championship leader Hamlin.
Leading up to his exit, brake issues drew concerns for the Team Penske driver throughout the day and became stable at one point. But the issue came without warning and resulted in his fourth DNF of the season, all due to crashes.
BRAKE FAILURE FOR BLANEY. 😳
📺 /📱 : USA Network pic.twitter.com/7sBvUy2zUj
— NASCAR on USA (@NASCARonUSA) September 13, 2026
Despite the disappointment of exiting out of the race, later chaos, the 14 stage points and all-around solid effort left Blaney with a glimpse of optimism heading into next Saturday’s Bristol Night Race.
“That was a shame because I thought we really did a good job today,” Blaney told the press. “The car was good and had some good stage points. I was looking forward to the end of the race, but the story is next week.
“We haven’t had a failure in our company on the brakes here, so we’ll just have to look at if there was anything different and I’ll leave it up to the team,” said Blaney regarding what can be done to solve the brake issues as he was far from the only driver who endure brake problems.
Throughout the afternoon, brake problems plagued the Ford camp with both Front Row Motorsports drivers Zane Smith and Noah Gragson also having their day consequently end.
Prior to Blaney’s exit, Smith had a brake issue on the 131st lap which sent the No. 38 Ford into a spin and slammed the Turn 1 wall on the driver’s door. Smith was able to get out of his car but was assisted by the AMR Safety Team after being seen visibly shaken from the impact.
Zane Smith goes around, bringing Stage 2 to an end under caution. pic.twitter.com/oN9teno1Lq
— NASCAR on USA (@NASCARonUSA) September 13, 2026
Smith’s teammate Gragson, who was involved in a multi-car crash in Stage 1, saw his day also end following the right front brakes shattered on the No. 4 Ford. Gragson brought his car to the pits with pieces flying off as well, finishing 33rd.
Perhaps the crescendo that caused a downward spiral in the second round of the Chase involved a pair of Chases.
On Lap 213, the assumption of Ford being bugged with brake problems went obsolete after Chase Elliott’s Chevrolet suffered the same fate in Turn 1. The failure sent Elliott onto the path of Chase Briscoe, collecting him into the carnage. It ended both of their afternoons and took a hit into their Chase bids with the duo taking home 31st and 32nd respectively.
TROUBLE FOR BRISCOE AND ELLIOTT. 😳
The two make contact late in the Enjoy Illinois 300.
📺 /📱 : USA Network pic.twitter.com/UnrPtX5C9Q— NASCAR on USA (@NASCARonUSA) September 13, 2026
Like Blaney beforehand, Elliott had no warning of losing brakes but was aware of the problems that dogged the other competitors.
“I was right behind Ryan when he blew his. I guess it’s kind of the luck of the draw, unfortunately. I just went to make a move on the No. 19 (Briscoe) there. I stepped on the brakes, exploded a rotor and that was about it,” Elliott explained.
“It’s really unfortunate. I thought the No. 9 LLumar Chevrolet team was having a really solid day. We were right there around the top-five. I thought we had the right strategy there at the end. We were able to kind of continue to march forward there. Proud of the effort today.”
With another rough going in the Chase, the man entering Bristol 11th in points sits 83 points behind Hamlin.
From Briscoe’s perspective, it was simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time when Elliott’s brake woes occurred. Now, his mindset is to deliver strong results in the next two months of competition as he’s now eighth in points, 59 markers behind Hamlin.
“Just have to go the next eight weeks and try to win as many of them as we can,” said Briscoe. “We kind of used nine lives today and kept trying to find our way back up there and at the end wasn’t in the place where we needed to be.
“Will go to the deer stand tomorrow and reset.”
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