| |
| Born | April 30, 1975 |
| Hometown | Emporia, Virginia |
| Awards | 2011, 2016-2017 Xfinity Series Most Popular Driver |
| Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series statistics | |
|---|---|
| Best pts finish | 9th (2004) |
| First race | 1998 Coca-Cola 600 |
| First win | 2001 Food City 500 |
| NASCAR Xfinity Series statistics | |
| Car no./team | #1 JR Motorsports |
| Best pts finish | 2nd (2011, 2012, 2016, 2017) |
| First race | 1995 Ford Credit 300 |
| First win | 1997 Gargoyles 300 |
Elliott William Barnes Sadler (born April 30, 1975) is a NASCAR Xfinity Series driver of the #1 OneMain Financial Chevrolet for JR Motorsports. His brother Hermie Sadler is also a NASCAR driver. Sadler attended James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia on a basketball scholarship until he injured his knee, effectively ending his basketball career. Sadler entered the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 1997.
Racing Career[]
He began racing in go-karts at the age of seven, and soon moved up to the Late Model stock car division at the local race track. His accomplishments include over 200 total wins, the 1983-84 Virginia State Karting Championship, and the North Carolina Gold Cup in 1991-92. He was runner-up in 1989 for the World Karting Association national title in 1989.
When he turned 18, he moved to the Winston Racing Series and ran full-time beginning in 1993. That same year, he got his first victory, and in 1995 was crowned track champion at South Boston Speedway, where he got 13 wins that year, including a 6-race winning streak.
In 1995 and 1996 Elliott ran a limited Xfinity Series schedule. In 1997, he earned a full-time ride with car owner Gary Bechtel. He got pole position at the season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway, and got his first win 13 races later at Nazareth Speedway. In total, he earned a total of 4 poles, and 3 wins. He also finished 5th in the Nationwide Series standings that year.
In 1998, Elliott once again got pole position at the season-opener in Daytona, and recorded two more Busch Series wins before moving to Winston Cup. He ran his first Cup race at the most physically-demanding, and longest, race of the year, the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's Motor Speedway.
He soon caught the eye of the Wood Brothers, and they gave him a full-time ride in 1999, he was only 24. That year, he finished second in the Rookie of the Year points, behind only Tony Stewart.
Elliott's first Cup win came in 2001, at Bristol Motor Speedway. He got there after a very gutsy pit call had him not come into pit lane when everyone else did. It really paid off, as Elliott started in 38th place, the lowest anyone has started at Bristol and won. He got two more top-5 finishes in 2001, and he finished 20th in the final point standings.
After a dismal 2002 season, Elliott decided to leave the #21 Motorcraft Ford. Robert Yates quickly snatched him up, giving him a ride in the #38 M&M's Ford.
In the first nine races of 2003, he earned two top-5 and five top-10 finishes. During that span, he also got his first career Cup pole position, at Darlington Raceway.
In 2004, Sadler won twice, and finished a career-best ninth place in the Nextel Cup standings, which also included eight top-5 finishes and fourteen top-10's.
On May 26, 2006, during a live broadcast of SPEED Channel's Trackside Live from Charlotte, Sadler was injured when he attempted a stage dive. Show analyst Jeff Hammond had been stage diving into the crowd in Charlotte for about the past three years, and when he made his attempt on this show, he encouraged Sadler to follow. Sadler got into the position to dive, only to slip off the stage (it had been raining earlier in the day), and fall to the ground, hitting a metal barricade on the way down. Hammond immediately began pushing through the crowd, and some audience members could be heard screaming, "Get a medic!" Sadler was treated on-site and left under his own power. He suffered only a bruised left thigh, and was cleared to race in the Coca-Cola 600. [1] One of those on-stage when Sadler fell was country music singer Blake Shelton. In 2001, Sadler appeared in the music video for Shelton's single, "Ol' Red." Blake got up to check on his friend, saying as he left, "I'm going to go check on my brother."
During June and July 2006, as his team continued to struggle, Sadler denined he would leave Robert Yates Racing in 2006. However, when the #19 Evernham Motorsports ride opened up in early August, Sadler was hired as the driver. In his debut with the team at Michigan, Sadler started 2nd and finished 10th. He has earned another top-ten since and will drive for the car in 2007.
Teams[]
| Year(s) | Car # | Sponsor | Make | Team/Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006-present | 19 | UAW/Dodge Dealers (2006-2007) Best Buy (2008-present) |
Dodge | Richard Petty Motorsports |
| 2003-2006 | 38 | M&M's | Ford | Robert Yates Racing |
| 1999-2002 | 21 | Citgo (1999-2000) Motorcraft (2001-2002) |
Ford | Wood Brothers Racing |
External links[]
- Elliott and Hermie Sadler Fan Club
- Elliott Sadler Cup Stats
- Elliott Sadler Busch Stats
- Elliott Sadler Truck Stats
- The Inside Groove.com - Elliott Sadler - Bio, Stats, Images, Links and more..
- Video of Sadler's failed stage dive