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May 9, 2012

Elliott Sadler Preview: VFW Help a Hero 200

"Darlington is a track with a lot of history, and the fans always bring an energy there unlike any other track."

RCR/HHP Photo RCR/HHP Photo

Event Preview Fact Sheet

Elliott Sadler
No. 2 OneMain Financial Chevrolet

Event/Date:
VFW Help a Hero 200
May 11, 2012

Venue:
Darlington Raceway

This Week’s OneMain Financial Chevrolet at Darlington Raceway … Elliott Sadler and the No. 2 OneMain Financial team will utilize Chassis No. 104 from Richard Childress Racing’s NASCAR Nationwide Series stable this weekend. The race at Darlington Raceway will mark the third time the No. 2 team unloads this chassis in 2012. This car competed at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where the team earned their first pole award of the season and finished third and at Texas Motor Speedway with a 12th-place finish. 

Back to the Lady in Black … Sadler will head to Darlington Raceway with eight Nationwide Series starts under his belt, as well as one pole (1997), two top-five and three top-10 finishes at the 1.366-mile track. In the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, the driver has 18 starts including one pole (2003), two top-five and four top-10 finishes. In 2011, Sadler made his only NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start at the track and finished seventh.

Last Time By … In 2011, Sadler and the OneMain Financial team hit the track nabbed “Too Tough To Tame,” leading 23 laps on his way to a third-place finish.

Just the Stats … According to NASCAR’s Loop Data Season-to-Date statistics, Sadler leads the Nationwide Series in average running position (6.77), average start (4.3), average mid-race (5.6), laps in top 15 (1,464), and total laps completed (1,542).

To the Point … Sadler ranks second in the Nationwide Series driver championship point standings, five points behind Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 

Seeing Pink … For the remainder of the season, Sadler will have a little more color to his outfit on race days. The Emporia, Va., native will sport pink driving shoes, showing support for Breast Cancer Awareness. Sadler’s mother, Bell, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007 and is now a survivor.

Home Sweet Home … Brett Griffin, spotter on the No. 2 OneMain Financial Chevrolet, is from nearby Pageland, S.C. Griffin is a graduate of the University of South Carolina and has worked with Sadler as his spotter for 12 years. Griffin also serves as spotter for RCR driver Jeff Burton in the Sprint Cup Series.

Race Rewind: Talladega … Sadler and the OneMain Financial team fought for a hard-earned 10th-place finish at Talladega after restarting from the 20th-position on the second green-white-checkered finish attempt. Sadler, who started the race from the pole position after rain postponed qualifying, competed in the top-10 for most of the race before the Chevrolet began to overheat. The driver narrowly missed several wrecks as he drove to his sixth top-10 of the season. 

ELLIOTT SADLER QUOTES:
What are your thoughts on Darlington Raceway?
“I love racing at Darlington (Raceway). It is a track with a lot of history, and the fans always bring an energy there unlike any other track. The track brings back a lot of memories for me. I earned my first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series pole there in 2003, and earned a pole in the Nationwide Series early in my career in 1997. I really love the driving style at Darlington, and with so much history, I always want to go there and do well. It’s a track that I haven’t won at before, and I’d love to be able to bring home a victory for RCR and OneMain Financial this weekend. Darlington is such a fun race with a lot of history.”
 

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