November 18th, 2009

STATESVILLE, N.C. – Elliott Sadler, driver of the No. 19 Best Buy Dodge Charger, and his team are heading to Homestead-Miami Speedway (HMS) this week to finish out the 2009 Sprint Cup Series season. As the team heads to Homestead, Sadler takes a quick look back at some of the positives of the 2009 season and what is yet to come as the team gears up for a busy offseason before heading back to Daytona in February for Speedweeks.

SADLER QUOTES
ON THE 2009 SEASON: “I love to race as much as anyone, but I’m honestly really looking forward to the off-season to kind of reset mentally and physically. We have a lot of exciting and positive things going on here at Richard Petty Motorsports and I can’t wait to see how it all comes together. We are making a manufacturer switch, merging with another team and working to make our team as strong as possible heading into 2010.

“This year was full of twists and turns right from the start. We ended last season as Gillett Evernham Motorsports and started this year as Richard Petty Motorsports. To look at our team now from where we were a year ago at this time is really pretty staggering. Last year we only had two cars in the top-35 and a third car qualifying each week on time. Now we have Richard Petty a part of our team and we have four cars securely in the top-35 heading into Daytona. We’ve are headed in the right direction and I’m expecting great things in 2010.”

November 16th, 2009

ELLIOTT SADLER — No. 19 STANLEY DODGE CHARGER
• Started 35th and finished 28th.
• Fell a lap down on lap 43
• Suffered heavy front end damage when involved in a wreck on lap 119 following first caution.
• Came to pit road several times to fix hood and splitter damage and remained one lap down.
• Fell a second lap down on lap 206

ELLIOTT SADLER: “We struggled with handling early and couldn’t do much of anything about it because the race stayed green for so long. Then once we finally got a caution to work on the Insignia Dodge we got caught up in the wreck on the restart. That pretty much put us in a tough spot the rest of the day. I’m proud of my guys for working so hard in the pits to get us back out there without loosing a lot of ground, but it was just a tough day.”

November 11th, 2009

STATESVILLE, N.C. – Elliott Sadler, driver of the No. 19 Insignia Dodge Charger, and his team are attempting to finish out the final two races of the season on a good note to build momentum into the offseason. Sadler recorded his fifth top-10 of the season while leading 12 laps two weeks ago at Talladega and would like to add to two more top-10s or better in the next two races.

Sadler, who is an avid outdoorsman, typically tries to sneak in his final round of golf of the year at Phoenix, before returning home in time for the start of hunting season on Monday.

SADLER QUOTES
ON PHOENIX INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY: “I like the layout of Phoenix a lot. It’s kind of fast like Richmond (Va.) without the banking. It’s one-mile and has similarities to Loudon (N.H.), but has higher speeds. It has a distinct backstretch. It really is it’s own beast altogether. We’ve picked up our flat-track program this year and I feel like we get a little better each and every time we visit.”

ON VISITING PHOENIX: “I love visiting that part of the country. They have great fans, great racing and there are a lot of nice restaurants, golf courses and shopping. I normally try to sneak away and get in at least one last round of golf for the season while I’m there. If not, I still try to visit a couple of the golf stores in the area to check if they have anything new that I haven’t seen. We also try to get a group together and go out for dinner. Phoenix has some of the best restaurants of any city that we visit. It’s just a fun trip.”

November 8th, 2009

ELLIOTT SADLER — No. 19 STANLEY DODGE CHARGER
• Started 33rd and finished 22nd.
• Fell down a lap on lap 42 and 120.
• Regained a lap after taking the wave around on lap 169.
• Battled a tight-center and loose-off handling condition.

SADLER: “We struggled today trying to find the handling on this track. (Crew Chief) Wally Rogers made a great call taking the wave around and a quick yellow got us one of our laps back.”

November 3rd, 2009

STATESVILLE, N.C. – Elliott Sadler, driver of the No. 19 Stanley Dodge, is spending some time in the tree stand (deer hunting) this week to relax after a busy week in Talladega. Last week, Sadler was the first Richard Petty Motorsports driver to race a Ford in preparation for the full-time manufacturer switch to Ford in 2010, helped on a Habitat for Humanity build in Birmingham, Ala., and found out he and his wife Amanda are expecting a baby boy due in March 2010. The 34-year-old Emporia, Va. native is back in a Dodge Charger this week at Texas Motor Speedway and for the remainder of the 2009 season.

SADLER QUOTES:
ON TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY: “Texas is one of my favorite race tracks we visit. I’ve had success there in the past, so that probably helps when picking a favorite track. It’s a fast race track and a lot of fun to really try and race people. Hopefully we can take our top-10 finish from last week and continue to built on that to finish the season out strong.”

ON HAVING A BOY: “My wife and I found out last week that we’re having a baby boy! Man, that’s so exciting. That’s really special to know that we can carry on the Sadler name. When we told my Dad he said he’s going out to buy a go-kart and a shotgun. I told him that we have a little time for that stuff - you can’t even race go-karts until you’re about five years old. He told me that he knows all that, but it’s never too early to get a head start.”

November 1st, 2009

ELLIOTT SADLER — No. 19 STANLEY DODGE CHARGER
• Started 26th and finished ninth.
• It was Sadler’s fifth top-10 finish.
• Second-best finish of the 2009 season.
• Sadler drove the first Ford entry for Richard Petty Motorsports on Sunday
• Sadler led laps 43-46 and 53-57.
• It was his was his 14th consecutive race at Talladega leading at least one lap.

ELLIOTT SADLER: “Man, it feels great (top-10 finish). I’m really proud of the car - it was fast and we were able to lead a couple laps, run up front and learn a lot of things that should help us for Daytona next year. I have to thank Max Jones and everybody at Yates Racing for giving me an opportunity to do this. We had a lot of fun today working with some of our future teammates. I’m proud of Jamie (McMurray), he’s a good friend of mine. Kasey (Kahne) also got a second place finish, so all around it was a good day for the Stanley car.”

WHAT HAPPENED IN ’THE BIG ONE’? “I’m not sure. I’ll have to look at the replay. When I got shuffled back I decided to try and stay out of trouble and ride in the back until it was time to go. When I decided to go I just got caught in the middle of it, so I just want to apologize to my guys for that. That messed up the car a little bit. But, to come home with a top-10 finish means you never give up, keep plugging away and get the best finish you can.”

October 26th, 2009

STATESVILLE, N.C. – Elliott Sadler’s No. 19 Stanley car will race as a Ford for the first time in NASCAR Sprint Cup competition this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway. Sadler is racing the Ford Fusion in preparation for Richard Petty Motorsports switch to Ford beginning in 2010. Sadler will return to his familiar No. 19 Dodge entry for the final three races of 2009.

ON DRIVING A FORD AT TALLADEGA: “Richard Petty Motorsports is working with Ford Racing as we get ready to make the full-time switch at Daytona in 2010. Since this is the final restrictor plate race of the season, we made the decision to run a Ford to get some work done in advance. This will be our first time to practice and work on a Fusion under real race conditions. It should help us get ready to make a strong showing at Daytona and put us in the best position to start next season. I’ll be back in a Dodge at Texas, Phoenix and Homestead, but since it’s important to start a season off on the right foot we thought we’d try to get a head start.”

ELLIOTT SADLER — No. 19 STANLEY DODGE CHARGER
• Started 40th and finished 21st
• Tight in the center, loose off and struggled with forward grip at the beginning of the race
• Tried various pit strategies to gain track position
• Raced as high as seventh on lap 178 restart
• Restarted in the third position on lap 306
• Fell at lap down to leader Denny Hamlin on lap 389
• Flat tire caused the No. 19 to make contact with the No. 34 to bring out the caution on lap 443
• Narrowly missed the lucky dog during the final caution on lap 498 (awarded to Clint Bowyer)
• Highest finishing RPM entry

SADLER: “An interesting day for sure with our Best Buy Dodge. Anytime that you start 40th at Martinsville it’s going to make for some tough sledding. We fought a race car that was tight in the center all day and couldn’t get our car to turn through the middle of the corner. But I’m proud of my guys because we worked our way all the way up to third and we’re running with the leaders until the car just fell off a bit.”

October 20th, 2009

STATESVILLE, N.C. – Elliott Sadler returns to Martinsville Speedway this weekend for a homecoming of his own. Sadler, a native of Emporia, Va., has made the 150-mile trip west down US-58 to the flat 0.526-mile Martinsville Speedway to watch races since he was a child. Now, as he works to puts the finishing touches on his 11th full NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season, Sadler would like nothing more than to win the TUMS Fast Relief 500 and add a signature Ridgeway grandfather clock to his home.

ON MARTINSVILLE: “It’s all that’s good about short track racing. You show up with a car that’s perfect - not even a scratch on it - and when you pull in the garage after the race you can barely recognize it from all the beating and banging. You have to race as hard or harder at Martinsville than you do anywhere else, cause if you start towards the back you’re already a half lap down. This may be one of the toughest places to race, but it’s a throwback to how racing used to be around the southeast. This is the last track left from the original NASCAR schedule, kind of like a Fenway Park, but it’s as important to our sport now as it’s ever been. Plus, I would love to add a Ridgeway grandfather clock to my home, but I have to win it.”

ON FANS AS GRAND MARSHAL: “Honoring the fans as grand marshal is one heck of a cool idea. Martinsville does a lot of great things every year, but this is probably the best idea in a long time. And especially at a place like Martinsville that has been around since the very beginning. I think it’s really going to be something special and I’m looking forward to it.”

October 19th, 2009

ELLIOTT SADLER — No. 19 STANLEY DODGE CHARGER
• Started 38th and finished 26th
• Tight in the center, loose off at the beginning of the race
• No. 19 Dodge struggled early in a race run, but better on longer runs
• Raced as high as 13th during an early green flag pit cycle
• Went a lap down around lap 100, a second lap down on lap 260
• Pitted for four tires and to clean up grass on the grill under caution on lap 313 following a spin by Greg Biffle
• Raced in honor of Stanley/Susan G. Komen for the Cure “Lady in Pink” Brandy Hickman

SADLER: “Man, I just wish we could’ve got a caution earlier in the race. I think we were in position for a lucky dog for almost 100 laps until the last green flag round of pit stops put us another lap down. Our Stanley/Susan G. Komen for the Cure Dodge was pretty good once we got going, but we struggled a little bit at the start of each race run. I wish we could have finished a little better for our “Lady in Pink” Brandy Hickman and also for my Mom—both of our breast cancer survivors with us tonight.”