Following the 2017 season, the No. 24 car driven by Chase Elliott was renumbered to No. 9 in honor of Elliott's father, 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Series champion Bill Elliott. After struggling through the first half of the 2018 season, Elliott scored his first stage win at New Hampshire. On August 5, Elliott scored his first NASCAR Cup Series win at Watkins Glen, giving Hendrick Motorsports its 250th race win and securing Elliott a Playoff spot. He added wins at Dover and Kansas during the Playoffs, and made it to the Round of 8 before a late crash at Phoenix effectively eliminated Elliott from championship contention. He finished the season sixth in points.