With Nationwide points tied, Sadler aims for Phoenix follow-up

Elliott Sadler, driver of the #2 OneMain Financial Chevrolet, sits in his car during practice for the NASCAR Nationwide Series Great Clips 200 at Phoenix International Raceway on November 9, 2012 in Avondale, Arizona. (Photo by Tyler Barrick/Getty Images for NASCAR)
Elliott Sadler, driver of the #2 OneMain Financial Chevrolet, sits in his car during practice for the NASCAR Nationwide Series Great Clips 200 at Phoenix International Raceway on November 9, 2012 in Avondale, Arizona. (Photo by Tyler Barrick/Getty Images for NASCAR)

The next-to-last race of the NASCAR Nationwide Series season was where it all unraveled for Elliott Sadler last year. This season, the penultimate event could be a different story.

Sadler’s renewed quest for a first NASCAR national series championship enters another turning point this weekend in Saturday’s Great Clips 200 (4 p.m. ET, ESPN) at Phoenix International Raceway. The points couldn’t be any closer, as he enters the race in a dead heat atop the standings with defending series champion Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Last season, Sadler came into Phoenix facing a 17-point deficit behind Stenhouse, but a multi-car crash triggered by Jason Leffler with 23 laps to go effectively derailed his title shot. Sadler was able to reverse some of the sour taste by winning at the mile track earlier this season, an accomplishment he hopes bodes well for Saturday’s 200-miler.

“With two races left in the season, there is still a lot to be decided with this championship,” Sadler said. “This time last year, we saw our season basically end after being wrecked toward the end of the race. It was a bit of redemption being able to come back and win at Phoenix earlier this season, and I know that we are looking to do the same thing this weekend.”

Top rookie Austin Dillon, Sadler’s teammate at Richard Childress Racing, ranks third in Nationwide standings, 21 points behind the co-leaders. Sam Hornish Jr., a distant 95 points off the top as the only other driver still mathematically eligible for the championship, scored his only Nationwide series victory in this race last season.

Greg Engle
About Greg Engle 7421 Articles
Greg is a published award winning sportswriter who spent 23 years combined active and active reserve military service, much of that in and around the Special Operations community. Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.