January 15, 2009
Elliott Sadler Speaks
Elliott Sadler spoke with the media yesterday via a conference call and on Sirius for the first time since the news broke that A.J. Allmendinger nearly replaced him at Gillett-Evernham Motorsports. Of course it's to be expected that Sadler is going to engage in damage control and spin things in the best light possible since he's still going to be racing for GEM next season but it was really hard to believe a lot of what he said to the point where I almost found it to be an insult to my intelligence. Sadler claimed that he contacted a lawyer for some legal advice, well filing an intent to sue is a lot more than just getting some advice. In addition Sadler claimed, as Tom Reddin from GEM did before him, that it was just a "family disagreement." Well, you don't threaten to sue over a simple disagreement or misunderstanding. Sadler said, "I don't think it's fair to sit here and say today that the team didn't want me." No? Then why did they seriously look at replacing you with A.J.? Naturally Sadler tried to blame the media and make it seem as if they reported the story all wrong but something tells me they depicted a lot more accurate picture of what was going on than Sadler tried to yesterday. I've heard this interview called "candid" and I thought it was anything but.
Sometimes it's really discouraging. Drivers find out they might be out of a ride through reports on the internet instead of via a phone call from their team. Interviews are done by teams and drivers that are nothing more than spin and damage control in which every word they say is carefully considered to make sure fans hear the right "message." As someone who used to work in public relations I understand completely why this is done but at the same time I think it can be over the top - Sadler would have been a lot better saying less rather than more about the situation with GEM because the more I heard from him the less credible I found him to be. Good communication seems to be increasing falling by the wayside especially when it comes to the increasing way teams leave everyone in the dark from the media to fans to even their own drivers.
Below in the comments section of another entry someone said that it was a callous way to treat people and I agree - it also shows a lack of respect and common courtesy. I don't understand how these teams expect to get good results out of their drivers, get positive media coverage or get full support from the fans when this is how they operate. Seems like the new way is to stick their heads in the sand about problems or uncomfortable situations and either hope they go away or in an attempt to ignore they as long as possible. Seems to me that only creates ill will and resentment.
Posted by silverdsl at 10:32 AM | Comments (2)
January 09, 2009
Elliott Sadler to Race the #19 in 2009 Afterall; Gillett-Evernham Reach Merger Agreement
The news that Gillett-Evernham Motorsports and Petty Enterprises have finalized an agreement to merger is major news on its own but perhaps even bigger news is that sources are saying that Elliott Sadler won't be replaced with A.J. Allmendinger after all and will return to the newly merged organization to race the #19 this season.
The way the Sadler situation has played out has been puzzling from start to finish and I think GEM very much mishandled the entire situation. It's hard for me to understand why GEM would tell Sadler he's out of the #19, then turn around and put him back in, though David Poole had a theory that made a lot of sense this morning on Sirius. Poole speculated that perhaps there was truth to the early rumors that some of the sponsors of the #19 were so upset about GEM's decision to remove Sadler from the car that they were going to leave with him and GEM couldn't afford to lose sponsors. That makes a lot of sense to me since Sadler's lawyer said he shot ads with more than one sponsor and no company is going to be happy about wasting money on ads and possibly other things that now can't be used.
I also don't understand how Sadler can return to the #19 given that he threatened to sue GEM and there are surely hard feelings on both sides. It seems to me that this isn't something that can just be swept under the rug. I would think that this would make for a very awkward and uncomfortable working environment. Is GEM going to want to give the #19 the same resources as the other teams? Are there going to be communication issues? Doesn't seem like the kind of situation that's going to do anything to help Sadler and his team improve their results from last season.
In addition, A.J. Allmendinger is apparently still in need of a ride according to his agent. To some degree, although his agent denies that they were negotiating with GEM with the idea of replacing Sadler in mind, I think GEM has kind of jerked Allmendinger around just as they have Sadler. Last week Allmendinger was probably thinking that he had found a full-time ride, now he may be exactly where he started - unemployed with the prospects of finding a ride by Daytona not looking very good. Supposedly after merging with Petty, GEM will field four cars next season but the #10 may only be part-time depending on how sponsorship works out so that doesn't sound like an ideal situation for Allmendinger. It's possible that he could end up in the #41 at Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing but it's widely thought that Bobby LaBonte is the front-runner for that ride.
As far as the merger goes, it's pretty much what most expected it would be. The newly merged organization will field four cars, the #19, #9, #43 in every race, with the #10 entered in the Bud Shootout and a minimum of seven additional races. The teams will be run out of the GEM shop and the only Petty employees other than Richard Petty who will be involved will be Robbie Loomis and Dale Iman. In addition, the Richard Petty Driving Experience willl continue to operate as a separate entity from GEM by Petty Holdings. One thing that isn't addressed is what involvement, if any, Boston Ventures, who had bought into Petty Enterprises last year, will have at GEM. I would guess that it might be minimal, and that their ownership interest will be in the Driving Experience.
One thing that Mike Bagley brought up this morning on Sirius is that it seems like there's quite a bit of disarray and questions that still need to be sorted out in a short amount of time and it could effect their level of preparedness for Daytona. I have to agree and I think it applies for Earnhardt-Ganassi as well. Neither organization has confirmed much of anything, including their driver lineups and it seems to me that it's going to be very hard for those teams to be fully ready to race when a little over a month before the first race they don't even know exactly who is going to be behind the wheel of all their cars. That doesn't seem like a recipe for success to me.
Update: Tom Reddin, GEM's Chief Operating Officer, is on Sirius right now talking about the Sadler situation and the merger with PE. He confirmed that Sadler will be back in the #19 for sure. To his credit Reddin didn't try to brush the situation off as a misunderstanding or otherwise downplay it, he said that GEM and Sadler had "differences" that they've since worked out. He said that they are all family and just like any family they have differences. Aside from the possibility that maybe GEM brought Sadler back because of the sponsors, I also wonder whether the lawsuit that Sadler threatened to file had merit and they were looking to avoid losing a protracted court battle. In addition, if they were going to have to pay Sadler anyway since they likely would have had to buyout the remaining two years on his contract, may as well pay him to race for them.
Posted by silverdsl at 08:07 AM | Comments (0)
January 06, 2009
Elliott Sadler's Lawyer Says Sadler Wants to Keep Racing the #19
Elliott Sadler's lawyer says that Sadler plans on suing Gillett-Evernham Motorsports so that he can race the #19 through the end of his contract in 2010. John Buric said,
"Our objective is to get in the car and race for them. We have a contract with them. We intend to enforce that contract."
I find it hard to believe that Sadler has any desire to or intention of racing for the organization that he found out on Christmas Eve planned on dumping him as their driver. This is nothing more than posturing and maneuvering to help Sadler get a generous settlement in the amount he wants from GEM. His lawyer says that Sadler isn't interested in having the last two years of his contract bought out but that's exactly what will end up happening. If the management at GEM is smart they would just throw a bunch of money at Sadler, be done with it and move on with A.J. Allmendinger, if only to save themselves additional negative publicity. That would also be good for Sadler since he's receiving his own share of criticism.
What's really astonishing to me is that according to Sadler's lawyer, ads were completed with Sadler for 2009 with all his sponsors except one. I'm amazed that even after some of the sponsors moved forward with advertising and maybe other things that featured Sadler that GEM released him anyway. When the news first broke that Sadler had been released rumor had it that one or more of the sponsors of the #19 were so upset that they were considering leaving GEM with Sadler. If it's true that ads and maybe other things were done with Sadler I can understand why those sponsors were so angry. With budgets being so tight right now due to the economy no company wants to spend money away on ads, photo shoots or anything else that just have to be thrown away. No wonder Sadler was so surprised by the news that he was getting released - no driver would expect that to happen after shooting ads for the following season with their sponsors.
Posted by silverdsl at 03:13 PM | Comments (0)
January 02, 2009
Elliott Sadler Files Notice That he May Sue for Breach of Contract
Paperwork was filed today by Elliott Sadler's attorney indicating that he may sue Gillett-Evernham Motorsports for breach of contract as a result of their decision to replace him in the #19 with A.J. Allmendinger in spite of the fact that two years remained on a contract extension that Sadler had signed with GEM during the 2008 season. Elliott has until January 20 to decide whether he'll actually sue for damages or not and I would assume the final decision will be made based on what GEM does for him between now and then. It may be that GEM is hesitating on buying out the last two years of his contract or isn't offering as much money as Elliott thinks he's entitled to. Filing notice to sue sends a message to GEM that Elliott is very serious about getting what he thinks is owed to him.
I say good for Elliott. It used to be frowned upon for a driver to sue when they were released by a team even if they thought they were owed money to the point where some said that teams wouldn't give a ride to a driver who threated to sue but those days are over. Now if a driver isn't happy with the way they're released or feel they're owed money they don't hesitate to sue and I can't blame them. More and more it seems that contracts don't mean much - there are so many "out" clauses in contracts that allow drivers, teams and sponsors to part ways with each other very easily. Those "out" clauses are in place to protect each party in case things don't work out and I think drivers, teams and sponsors are entitled to make use of the "out" clauses as they feel necessary. However, I also think that the drivers need to be able to stand up for themselves, particularly when they feel that they're owed money or otherwise been done wrong.
There's been a lot of conflicting information circulating as to when Elliott found out that he was getting released. While Elliott was apparently aware that the team was considering making a change, he didn't find out there were actual negotiations underway between GEM and A.J. until he got phone calls from people last Tuesday, just before Christmas, asking about media reports to that effect. GEM has every right to make the decisions they feel are necessary to improve the performance of their teams however I also think they owe it to Elliott to have enough respect for him to inform him when the decision was made to replace him so that he found out from them and not from others. As I said in another entry, the timing is horrible as well - maybe they wanted to be sure that they could come to an agreement with A.J. or were hoping to break the news to Elliott after the holidays but knowing the way the rumor mill works in this sport and how hard it is to keep anything a secret, being up-front with Elliott about what was going on would have been a wise course of action.
I would guess that Elliott and GEM will negotiate an agreement that will result in Elliott being paid a generous amount of money to buyout the last two years of his contract and Elliott won't end up suing. An ugly lawsuit will only result in more negative publicity for GEM and there's no telling what might be revealed in a lawsuit that neither GEM nor Elliott wants known publically.
Posted by silverdsl at 06:34 PM | Comments (1)
December 29, 2008
Just Have to Shake My Head...
I really don't like talking about the drivers or players personal lives in this space unless something is exceptionally newsworthy as I don't much of anything in their personal lives is any of my business. But there's something bugging me. It seems that there's a segment of Elliott Sadler fans who are convinced that he lost his ride because of his fiancée. Ridiculous. Drivers don't lose their rides because of their significant others, nor do they often lose their rides for things in their personal lives in general unless it's something so inappropriate or unacceptable that it can't be overlooked. If they did, then there would be a lot of unemployed drivers right now because there are plenty of significant others who haven't always behaved perfectly and plenty of drivers who have acted out or done things in their personal lives that not every fan would approve of.
NASCAR is a performance based sport. The drivers are expected to perform in two ways - for their sponsors in terms of getting them exposure and for the team in terms of the results on the track. The second is particularly important - teams and sponsors want to see the driver they have a lot of money invested in perform on the track. If that driver doesn't perform sometimes they can keep their ride if they're good at getting their sponsor exposure and are popular with the fans but ultimately a driver needs to show they can race competitively and preferably up front. The results for Elliott on the track haven't been very good since he signed with Gillett-Evernham Motorsports and that's why he lost his ride. Not because of his significant other. But because GEM feels that A.J. Allmendinger will likely get better results in the #19 than Elliott.
I don't even want to go down the road of discussing the ridiculous attitudes that some fans have towards the drivers significant others and their personal lives in general besides saying that I feel sorry for both the drivers and those who they choose to be with. Who a driver chooses to be with is their own business but unfortunately there's quite a few fans who think differently.
Posted by silverdsl at 05:04 PM | Comments (2)
December 27, 2008
Elliott Sadler Being Replaced by A.J. Allmendinger in the #19?
ESPN.com is reporting that sources are telling them that Elliott Sadler is being replaced by A.J. Allmendinger in the #19 in 2009. While I'm not entirely shocked that Gillett-Evernham Motorsports would think about releasing Elliott since his results haven't been that good since joining GEM, I'm very surprised that they actually followed through on it since according to the ESPN report is accurate GEM made this move apparently against the wishes of some of their sponsors. In addition, releasing a popular driver is never going to go over well with fans, but looks particularly bad for an organization to release a driver at Christmas, and even worse when the driver in question is just a couple of weeks away from his wedding - some Christmas and wedding present! Unless Elliott did something completely inappropriate and inexcusable that the team couldn't overlook then I think it's a terrible move PR-wise, even if GEM feels that it's a legitimate business move.
But how it could possibly be a good business move if it's true that some of the sponsors of the #19 are so unhappy with the move that they might also leave GEM? At a time when it's very difficult to find and keep sponsorship it's mind-boggling why an organization would do something that might upset their sponsors to such a degree that they might lose them. I just don't understand why GEM would risk letting millions of dollars which may not be easy to replace walk away. Sponsors normally play a key role in determining who the driver of the car they sponsor is and rightly so considering how much money they have invested in their sponsorships.So why would GEM do something their sponsors don't want them to do? I would think that some of the sponsors might have already started putting together marketing, advertising and other promotions featuring Elliott - if so, if I were them I wouldn't be too happy about having to start over with a different driver.
In addition, while A.J. is a talented driver who raced well at the end of the season, is he really going to get results that are that superior to Elliott? I'm not so sure. Elliott may have struggled the last few years but he has won three times in Cup and five times on the Nationwide level so he does know how to get a car to Victory Lane. A.J. on the other hand hasn't yet won on any level in Nascar, and while he's greatly improved since he first started racing in Cup, I think it's still somewhat unknown as to what he's truly capable of.
So I can understand why some sponsors may be leery, particularly when one considers that Elliott is a much more popular driver with the fans than A.J., something that sometimes matters more to the sponsors than performance. That should also matter to GEM since presumably some of their revenue comes from merchandise sales. While Kasey Kahne probably makes up the bulk of GEM's merchandise sales, I would think that the revenue they made from Elliott wasn't so bad either - will A.J. really be able to generate the same level of revenue?
I do have to wonder how long this might have been in the works. A number of months ago Elliott was left out of a Dodge radio ad. At the time it was said that it was an accidental oversight but one has to wonder if wasn't so accidental after all. Though if they've really been thinking about doing this for months it would seem that would be enough time to get all the sponsors on-board with a driver change.
The whole thing is very puzzling to me. If what ESPN is reporting is true I have to think there's some major piece of information that hasn't come to light yet (and might never) that would explain why GEM is making what appears to be a very curious move on the surface. I don't understand why they would do something to upset their sponsors and at a time when it's essential that teams and the sport overall do whatever they can to engage fans, that GEM would do something that will result in them losing the support of some fans. In this economy it just doesn't seem wise to anger both sponsors and fans.
I feel bad for Elliott - it's never easy when a driver loses their ride but it's a particularly bad time right now since there are so few open rides on any level, plus it's the holidays and he's getting married soon. This will really suck some of the joy out of what should be a very happy time for Elliott. I hope everything works out for him either with GEM or another team and that we'll see him racing competitively next season in Cup.
All of that said, I have been hoping that A.J. would find a ride so part of me would be happy for him if this is all true. It's just too bad that him getting a ride may result in Elliott losing his.
Posted by silverdsl at 07:06 PM | Comments (2)
May 29, 2008
Elliott Sadler Signs Multi-Year Contract Extension With Gillett-Evernham Motorsports
Today it was announced that Elliott Sadler has signed a multi-year contract extension with Gillett-Evernham Motorsports. I admit to being surprised by this announcement since Elliott has most definitely not lived up to the lofty expectations that some had for him the past few years and the results haven't been very good this season either. In all fairness to Elliott he can only do the most with the cars that he's been given and he might not have been given very competitive cars in recent times. However, I've been wondering this season whether GEM is fully satisfied with what they're getting from Elliott - apparently the answer is yes, they are. Elliott says that he's also very happy with GEM. he said,
“This is the place where I want to race. I think what we are building here is special and something other drivers and crew members envy.”
I'm sure some drivers and crew members would take working at GEM over their current teams. However, is being 25th in points really something to envy? That's certainly better than being 35th in points or worse, but it's not all that great either.
Of course these days a driver's personality and what they do off-the-track is just as important as what they do on the track. Tom Reddin, GEM's CEO said,
“In addition to being a great Sprint Cup driver, Elliott has a wonderful personality that attracts fans and sponsors who love working with him. We have enjoyed working with Elliott over the last year and a half and look forward to continuing our relationship.”
Which might very well be why GEM was willing to overlook that Elliott is 25th in points and hasn't come close to repeating the success he had in 2004 since then. It's very true that Elliott is a driver who has a terrific personality. He's very outgoing, friendly and funny. Elliott is extremely fan-friendly and represents his sponsors extremely well. Those are important qualities to teams and sponsors.
However, what's interesting to me is that there's been a bit of a backlash against Elliott from some of his fans. Some have come to think that he's fake, some are unhappy with the activities of his fan club and others have some issues with things that go on in his personal life. Of course there are fans of every driver who take issue with similar things in relation to their own favorite driver, and part of that might be that fans tend to get extra critical when the on-track performance isn't very good, but it seems like over the past year or two more and more of Elliott's fans have been vocal in expressing their displeasure about a variety of off-the-track issues that relate to him than with most other drivers. I wonder if GEM is aware of any of this? Maybe not since a lot of negativity in regards to those issues doesn't have too much to do with them and might be directed towards Elliott through his fan club. In addition, given that a lot of fans seem to prefer to be negative about everything and are never satisfied no matter what happens, it may be that GEM simply ignores those who have been less than positive about Elliott. Still, it's interesting that they cite how fans are attracted to him, when the past few years some seem to be turning away from him.
Posted by silverdsl at 03:55 PM | Comments (0)
May 22, 2008
Sadler Still Upset With Allmendinger
Even though A.J. Allmendinger immediately apologized and took full responsibility for wrecking Elliott Sadler during the Sprint Showdown last weekend, Elliott is still angry about what happened. Elliott said,
"I'm very upset about that still. There's a big difference between 43 race car drivers, about spinning out under somebody and taking them out, which is always an accident, and just absolutely running in the back of somebody. There's a big difference in doing that. It's the difference between an accident and doing something intentionally."
Maybe I'm misunderstanding but is Elliott saying that he thinks that A.J. intentionally wrecked him? A.J. made a mistake. It was a costly mistake for Elliott and his team but it was an accidental mistake all the same. If Elliott thinks that there was intent behind what A.J. did, did Elliott intentionally wreck Tony Stewart at Darlington?
I understand that drivers are going to be upset and frustrated at wrecking and that they're going to get angry with their fellow competitors. However, Elliott's anger seems out of proportion to what happened, particularly in light of him being in A.J.'s shoes just the week before. The other thing is that it was a non-point race. All the drivers are very competitive so wrecking in a non-points race is still going to bother them but to the point where Elliott is still upset days later and even after A.J. has extended an apology? Seems extreme to me.
I suppose I just don't understand a racer's mentality but I have to wonder once more as I did in a prior entry as to whether there's something else going on here that fans don't know about. Michael Waltrip was also hard on A.J. on This Week in Nascar. Is there an issue with A.J. in that he's rubbed his fellow competitors the wrong way on- or off-the-track? Or is there an issue in general with the way some drivers are racing that has some of their fellow drivers upset and that's being reflected in Elliott and Michael's comments? After all, Michael also had harsh words for Casey Mears after Casey wrecked him at Richmond.
Perhaps the issue with A.J. at least is that he's still fairly new, not just to Cup but to Nascar overall, and since he missed a lot of races last year and was removed from the car for a while this year he hasn't yet earned the respect of his fellow drivers to the point where they're willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. Meanwhile with Tony and Elliott who have raced against each other for years, there's more understanding and respect there.
It just seems curious to me that Elliott is still so angry, but perhaps he and A.J. will speak in person this weekend and Elliott will be able to forgive him.
Posted by silverdsl at 02:55 PM | Comments (0)
May 20, 2008
A.J. Allmendinger vs. Elliott Sadler
Although the All-Star Weekend was mostly devoid of excitement there was one incident during the Sprint Showdown that I had forgot about until it came up on last night's This Week in Nascar. A.J. Allmendinger accidentally got into Elliott Sadler and put him into the wall and out of the race. Of course that was a huge disappointment for Elliott since he started on the pole and was in contention to win the fan vote which would have advanced him into the All-Star Race if he wasn't able to race his way in. Not much has gone right for Elliott not only this season but for the past few seasons so he and his team surely had high hopes for what Saturday night might bring. But A.J.'s mistake dashed all those hopes and Elliott wasn't too happy about it.
A.J. later took full responsibility for the incident saying,
"I don’t know if I can really defend myself. It was my fault -- I slid up in to him. I didn’t mean to do it. We’d been loose throughout the whole race to start. I was tucked under Brian (Vickers) to try to get him by and get around Elliott (Sadler) clean. I basically passed him right as that yellow came out. I was so close to Brian that the nose just took off on me and I was out of throttle the whole time just trying to miss him. I don’t want to race like that. I don’t want to be known to race like that. There’s no defense. I messed up. I’ll apologize to him but I know right now that doesn’t mean anything. I don’t want to be known for that. We’ll talk later. There’s no defense there that was my fault."
But I have to wonder if he would still have been so willing to extend an apology to Elliott if he knew what Elliott had said about him. After he got out of his car Elliott lashed out at A.J. He said, "If you take a look at the replay you can tell what happened. The 84 [Allmendinger] just took us out. There's a reason why he gets taken out of that racecar it seems like every other week. It's a shame." More than a few people felt that Elliott's comments were overly harsh and I tend to agree. I understand that Elliott had just gotten out of his car, hadn't yet talked to A.J. and was both extremely angry and disappointed at the way things had turned out. Still, I don't really like it when the drivers throw insults around about each other. It's to be expected that there are going to be times when drivers don't think too kindly of each other either because of an incident on the track or because they just don't like each other. However, I think that their harshest comments for each other should be made privately, not publically.
That's particularly true for Elliott who was in A.J.'s shoes just a couple of weeks ago at Darlington when he wrecked Tony Stewart at Darlington due to a mistake he made. So if there's anyone who should be understanding that sometimes mistakes happen that result in wrecked race cars it's Elliott. He did exactly what A.J. did - take responsibility and apologize and all was quickly forgiven between him and Tony. I wonder if he'll be able to forgive A.J. as easily as Tony was able to forgive him?
What was interesting to me is that A.J.'s mistake must have been a pretty glaring error in judgment, which may be one reason why Elliott was so upset about it. I seem to remember Michael Waltrip commenting about it on Saturday night over his radio during the race and when Steve Brynes brought up how harsh Elliott's comments about A.J. were last night on TWiN, Michael again was critical of A.J. and his mistake. Still, the reality is that every driver from a rookie with just a few races under his belt to the most experienced veteran is going to make mistakes sometimes. I suspect it's easier for those in the garage area to have tolerance for those drivers who have been around a long time making mistakes then for relative newcomers like A.J. So A.J. may have some work to do to earn the respect of his fellow competitors - I still don't think his mistake or that he needs to earn respect makes it acceptable to insult him though.
Elliott made reference to A.J. being removed from his car for Mike Skinner for a few races, but he could end up on the sidelines himself if his results don't improve sooner rather than later. Since finishing 6th at the Daytona 500 Elliott hasn't finished in the top ten and he's only finished in the top fifteen twice which had put him 28th in points which isn't very good. Since 2004 when he won two races and finished 9th in points, the results for Elliott have spiraled downhill at an almost alarming rate to the point where last season he only had two top tens and an average finish of 25th. Of course a lot of that is due to the quality of the cars that he was given to race at both Yates Racing and Gillett-Evernham Motorsports - if a car is bad there's only so much a driver can do with it. However Elliott's teammate Kasey Kahne has seemed to make some gains since last season in presumably the same or similar equipment so that doesn't look too good for Elliott. The saving grace for Elliott is that he still remains very popular with the fans and he's extremely marketable, which has to make his sponsors happy even if the results aren't as good as they might like. So that might make GEM have more patience with him than they might with some other drivers.
Posted by silverdsl at 08:16 AM | Comments (0)
March 28, 2008
Elliott Sadler Injures Back, May Not be Able to Race at Martinsville
Elliott Sadler injured his back pretty badly last week to the point where he's in a great deal of pain when he sits down. As a result Dennis Setzer practiced the #19 this afternoon and may also qualify the car. From the sounds of it Elliott may not be able to practice tomorrow either and in a worst case scenario might not be able to race on Sunday unless the team can figure out a way to make him comfortable in the car.
What must complicate things tremendously is that usually muscle relaxers and pain killers are prescribed for back injuries but Elliott probably can't take any of those things to relieve the pain because those medications are likely all on the banned substance list for drivers for a certain number of days prior to when they're getting in the car. Apparently Elliott initially injured himself while he was working out and then injured himself even further while he was playing golf. I'm sure some fans will criticize him for playing golf after he hurt himself the first time but the pain probably wasn't too bad so he might not have thought it was anything too serious. Not to mention depending on who he was playing golf with he might have felt he couldn't cancel his golf date if he was playing with sponsors or others he might be obligated to.
With Elliott off to somewhat of an uneven start to the season following a couple of other mediocre years, an injury that could effect his ability to race is the last thing he needs. I hope he heals quickly and is able to race on Sunday!
Posted by silverdsl at 03:19 PM | Comments (0)
December 26, 2007
Unanswered Questions Heading Into 2008
As 2007 comes to an end there's lots of unanswered questions heading into the new year for a lot of teams, drivers and Nascar itself...
*Will Brendan Gaughan find a ride? I think the last thing that anyone expected was that Brendan would still be looking for a ride this late but then again it was also pretty surprising when the merger between South Point Racing and Wyler Racing fell apart which led to South Point Racing closing their doors.
*How many other teams might have to fold due to financial or other issues?
*What team will Ted Musgrave race for in 2008? At the end of the season there was a lot of talk that he had a deal in place but nothing's been announced yet.
*Will Morgan-McClure Motorsports field a Cup car next season? That they're heading into 2008 with no driver, no crew chief and no sponsor doesn't seem to bode well for them.
*A lot of fans have dug in their heels and are insistent that everything about the "new" Nascar is horrible as compared to the way things used to be. Any change, no matter how small is met with negativity, and more and more fans seem to like complaining and being negative about everything they hate about Nascar from some drivers to the governing body more than they enjoy watching good racing (yes, there is some of that!) and cheering for their favorite drivers. How is Nascar going to respond to these increasingly vocal fans?
*How long will Steve Park keep looking for a ride before the desire to race is greater than his desire to find an elite ride? And if he doesn't race next year either, how long before Steve acknowledges that he might be done?
*How many other talented drivers will have to sit on the sidelines next season for all or part of the season due to a lack of quality rides, sponsorship or other factors?
*Rumors circulated at the end of the season that all or part of Bill Davis Racing might be sold. Will that sale actually happen? More and more teams are finding that they need to bring on additional financial partners due to the ever increasing costs of racing so it wouldn't be surprising to see this sale go through at some point.
*How will switching manufacturers from Chevy to Toyota effect Joe Gibbs Racing? Some are predicting that JGR won't skip a beat and will be just as competitive as ever, while others are predicting that 2008 will be a disaster for them. I think 2008 will more likely be somewhere in the middle - an organization like JGR doesn't suddenly become non-competitive that quickly, but with how many problems Toyota had in Cup in 2007 I don't think it will be smooth sailing either.
*How will Dale Earnhardt, Jr. adjust to racing for a different organization for the first time in his Cup career? Many are already penciling him in as the 2008 Cup Champion but I think things won't be as easy for Junior in 2008 as some think. Aside from making the transition from DEI to Hendrick Motorsports, Junior will also be dealing with new teammates who are just as high-profile as he is, new major sponsors and new obligations that could be a distraction from what he's trying to accomplish on the track.
*Will HMS continue their dominant ways in the Cup Series next year? Will Jimmie Johnson win his third Cup championship in a row? I believe HMS will continue to be one of the best organizations in the garage, but I suspect that some of the other elite teams will close the gap a little. I expect Jimmie to contend for his third championship in a row.
*Will BDR, Michael Waltrip Racing and Red Bull Racing improve in performance in 2008? MWR has made the most changes, bringing in a new financial partner, new upper management, a Director of Engineering, three new crew chiefs, as well as additional personnel and resources. However, BDR and RBR must also be working hard to ensure that they are more successful next season. Some believe that Dave Blaney is poised to have a breakout season but BDR has struggled so much the past few seasons I'm not convinced of that. I think Brian Vickers will likely have a much stronger 2008, assuming that RBR can give him more competitive cars than they did this season.
*Who's going to end up in the #00 for MWR after the first five races? It's expected that one or both MWR development drivers, Josh Wise or Michael McDowell, will end up in the #00, but MWR has been known to surprise - will a veteran end up in the mix?
*How will all the open wheel drivers fare in Cup in 2008? With two of them needing to qualify for races on speed to start the season, and a limited amount of experience in Nascar for all of them, the results might not be pretty.
*Will drivers who struggled such as Kasey Kahne, Elliott Sadler, Michael Waltrip and Jeremy Mayfield rebound in 2008?
*What company will replace Craftsman as the sponsor of the Truck Series?
Posted by silverdsl at 01:58 PM | Comments (0)
October 10, 2006
Elliott and Hermie Sadler Donate $25,000 to VJCG
Elliott Sadler, his business manager/spotter/close friend Brett Griffin, and to a lesser degree, Elliott's brother Hermie, have taken some criticism, along with the Sadler Fan Club, regarding some of the activities and charitable donations the Elliott and Hermie Sadler Charitable Foundation has been involved with. In fact there's a blog, whose author has discussed at length his displeasure with some of Elliott's recent behavior, as well as the approach towards charitable causes, in that if I'm understanding things correctly, there's some unanswered questions regarding how much of the money that's raised by the Foundation actually goes to charity.
Recently, the Sadlers had a fan club event that raised a significant amount of money for two good causes. At Talladega, the Sadlers presented Kyle Petty with a check for $25,000 for the Victory Junction Gang Camp. Earlier in the week the Sadlers also donated $10,000 to the Commonwealth Autism Service of Virginia. I have no idea how much that amounts compared to the total that was raised by the event itself (some percentage of the amount raised likely went towards costs for the event itself), but $35,000 is no small amount of money. I think if someone's going to rake them over the coals for their failings in that area (and I do think the writer of the previously mentioned blog has some valid points regarding the Foundation and Elliott overall), then the good things that that Sadlers do regarding raising money for charitable causes via their Foundation deserves mention as well.
I've said it before and I'll say it again - I think one of the greatest things about Nascar is how committed the drivers, teams, sponsors, and fans are to helping various charitable causes. Things may not always be perfectly smooth regarding the Sadler Foundation, at least in some fan's eyes, but I'm very happy to see them donating a nice chunk of money to some good causes.
Posted by silverdsl at 10:22 AM | Comments (0)
September 19, 2006
Is This is a Conflict of Interest?
Apparently Elliott Sadler, Dale Jarrett, and Elliott's business manager, Brett Griffin are partners in a company that handles marketing and public relations for sponsors and young drivers in Nascar. Sounds like a solid business venture right? After all, there will always be the need for public relations representatives and marketing plans. However, this company has as it's clients Stephen Leicht, who was not too long ago teammate of DJ and Elliott at Robert Yates Racing, and CitiFinancial, who is a RYR sponsor. My question is, now that both DJ and Elliott have left RYR, how can RYR trust that when their company is advising Leicht on his career, that they're not going to advise him to leave RYR too? And how can RYR trust that one of those drivers isn't going to convince CitiFinancial to go to one of their teams? After all, UPS already left RYR for Michael Waltrip Racing with DJ.
This probably isn't the only kind of situation like this in Nascar. But it really jumps out to me because of the fact that Driver's Choice represents an RYR driver and sponsor. That doesn't seem like a good road to go down to me, because it could open all parties to some uncomfortable questions in the future.
Posted by silverdsl at 01:40 PM | Comments (0)
September 11, 2006
Elliott Sadler and Dale Jarrett Shed More Light on Why they Left Robert Yates Racing
Elliott Sadler and Dale Jarrett participated in a golf fund-raiser for a candidate for Sheriff in Brunswick County, Virginia. While they were at the golf outing they both spoke to the Roanoke Daily Herald at length about leaving Robert Yates Racing. DJ has mentioned in the past that he was concerned about the lack of focus on engineering at RYR being one reason why he was leaving for Michael Waltrip Racing, but Elliott has always declined to get into specifics until now.
Apparently Elliott was unhappy with the way the Roush-Yates engine partnership worked and how the Roush Racing cars seemed to benefit more. He said,
“I knew how much we helped Roush Racing. I knew how much the motors meant. Robert Yates and Doug Yates build so many great motors and really helped Jack Roush's bunch out a lot and Jack and those guys wouldn't return the favor, really didn't care how we ran, so that's one reason I left. I was tired of all the help we gave them and nothing in return so I really wanted to get out of that situation, get out of that picture, as quick as I could.”
I'm surprised by how critical Elliott was of Roush considering he had said previously that he didn't want to say anything bad about anyone, but perhaps he figures that now that he's no longer associated with RYR, he has nothing to lose. Thing is, it's hard to tell whether Elliott is right that RYR gave Roush a lot of help, but RYR didn't get the same kind of consideration, or whether that's just Elliott's frustration about his poor finishes this season in the #38 coming to the surface. I don't know why RYR would stay in a partnership that doesn't benefit them, but I suppose that given the other problems that the organization is facing, having to worry about being completely on their own regarding their motors isn't something that they're probably prepared to handle at the moment.
Elliott continued,
“The big difference is I believe in what the 19 team is doing. That's why I decided to go to Evernham Motorsports. I really believe in his direction. I love his fire. I love his intensity. I'm not saying what everyone at Robert Yates Racing was doing was wrong. I just couldn't buy into the system they had and the direction they were going in. I really wanted to buy into a program I really believed in and I like the way Ray Evernham does business. I like the direction he's going in so it just a little bit fits my cup of tea a little better.”
I think the key part there is "I just couldn't buy into... the direction they were going in." Translation: Elliott saw the writing on the wall that RYR is a sinking ship and he wanted out! Evernham Motorsports has their own issues, but they aren't talking about possibly shutting down a team, they've got a car in the Chase, and Elliott seems to be racing better there in just a few race than he did all season at RYR.
On the other hand, DJ repeated what he's said previously about how RYR has fallen behind on engineering, which is deadly when there's so much emphasis by the big teams on engineering. He said,
“That's where we've fallen behind at Robert's is on the engineering side and that's Toyota's total focus, on their engineering. That's how they do everything, whether it's building a good passenger car or whether it's in their motorsports department. They realize how important engineering is and their staff is second to none and I think that's what will allow us to be competitive right from the beginning.”
I hope he's right! I'm being more conservative in my predictions, in that I think that while the Toyota teams won't be terrible, that it will take some time for them to be competitive and race up front. But it's very good to hear there's such a focus on engineering at Toyota, as increasingly a strong engineering program seems to be essential for teams to suceed. I figured that Toyota was big on engineering, which is one reason why when Michael Waltrip fans get wistful for Tommy Baldwin, Jr. to leave Bill Davis Racing and be Michael's crew chief next season, I'm not among them. Doug Yates said on XM that neither Tommy nor Slugger Labbe are engineering oriented crew chiefs, and I think that in the current climate in Nascar with how important engineering is, that's a big black mark against both men. Which makes me wonder how well Tommy is going to mesh with Toyota's style of doing things next season.
Back to DJ, what I really like is that he's looking forward to the challenge that next season is going to present. He said,
“It's a new challenge for me and there's not a lot of people in sports that get to do something totally new and take a big chance like I am when you're 50-years-old. I like the challenge it presents, the opportunity to get in on the ground floor with a new team, a new manufacturer coming in. To have a hand in developing their entire program is a challenge I look forward to.”
I think it really is a special opportunity because DJ, and the other drivers who are part of Toyota's Cup program next season, will always have a place in the Nascar history books as the first to drive Toyotas in Cup. That's something pretty cool. And hopefully they will have a lot of success doing it too!
Posted by silverdsl at 03:47 PM | Comments (0)
August 16, 2006
It's Official: Elliott Sadler to the #19
It's been a very badly kept secret that Elliott Sadler was going to end up in the #19 at Evernham Motorsports, the only question was how soon was it going to happen? That question was answered today when Elliott was officially announced as the driver of the #19, not only this weekend at Michigan, but also for the rest of the season and beyond. I have to admit that even though this isn't a suprise, considering how many rumors have been circulating, that it's still strange for me to think of Elliott in a car other than the #38, and without M&Ms as his sponsor. Of course he was with Wood Brothers Racing prior to joining Robert Yates Racing, so it's not like M&Ms has been his sponsor for his entire career. Yet Elliott has come to be called the Candyman by many fans, and it's a very fitting nickname. It's probably going to be a long time before I stop thinking of Elliott each time I see M&Ms. But change is a part of this sport, just like it is any other, so I'll get used to Elliott being in the #19, it's just going to seem odd for a while.
Elliott, who was testing the car today in Kentucky, said of Ray Evernham and going to the #19,
"Ray has a lot of passion for this sport, and a tremendous will to win. I just want to run well and have a chance to win, and the things this team offered me just seemed to fit what I wanted as a driver."
I most certainly hope that Elliott is able to win in the #19. I would love to see him in Victory Lane! But is he instantly going to have success in the #19? I'm not so sure. There's surely going to be an adjustment period where he gets used to working with a new team, a new sponsor, being at a new organization and racing a different manufacturer's cars. There's also the small matter of how the #19 has mostly been at the back of the field for almost every race. I have my doubts that all responsibility for the #19 performing so poorly this season rests completely on Jeremy Mayfield's shoulders. So I'm not expecting that Elliott is going to suddenly have the #19 up front in every race.
I heard some of Elliott's comments that he made to the media today via XM, and apparently he seriously considered four teams before settling on Evernham. He gave no indication as to specifically which teams those were, other than to say that none of them had yet filled their open seat. However, that's not to say that they necessarily have an empty seat either. I got the sense that at least one of these rides might have been replacing a driver who is currently in place, similiar to what he's doing with the #19. As he said above, he felt that Evernham offered him the best opportunity to win, and he was very impressed with the direction that they're going in for the future in terms of the Car of Tomorrow and other things, in comparison to some of the other teams he was thinking about signing with.
He also talked about how smooth the process of changing teams was this week, and how he made sure to do everything he could to leave RYR on good terms. Once again, Elliott refused to say exactly what "differences" led him to want to leave RYR, sayiing that he didn't feel it was right to air dirty laundry (something that Jeremy should give some thought to). He said that it was very important to him for there not to be any ill will between himself and RYR since the garage area is so small, and you don't want to burn any bridges because you never know. That's very true - sometimes I think people get wrapped up in the here and now when they're angry, and don't think of the consequences of their actions when they lash out. The person that they're rude to, that they diss or dismiss all together, or the person that they're nasty to, might be someone who they need help from in the future. I'm far from perfect, but I make an effort to try to handle even difficult situations in such a way that there's as little hard feelings as possible. And sometimes it's unavoidable, but I try my best, just like Elliott tried his best and apparently succeeded.
Posted by silverdsl at 03:20 PM | Comments (0)
August 15, 2006
I Wish!
Qualifying, Watkins Glen, New York, August, 2006. I really don't like to use other people's photos without permission in this space, and this one belongs to motorsports.com, but I sure do wish that this was going to be the Michael Waltrip Racing Cup lineup next season! Two out of three isn't bad, but it would be awesome if Elliott Sadler was going to be in the #00. Probably wouldn't have gone over very well with fans, the media or in the garage area if Michael had taken both of RYR's Cup drivers in addition to a sponsor for Michael Waltrip Racing. But a girl can dream, can't she?
Posted by silverdsl at 10:04 PM | Comments (0)
August 11, 2006
Elliott Sadler to the #19 Sounds Pretty Certain
There's been a ton of rumors even before Jeremy Mayfield got released that Elliott Sadler was going to replace him in the #19. Today, Elliott confirmed that he's been talking with Ray Evernham about a ride, and it sure does sound like there's a good possiblity that not only is Elliott going to end up in the #19, but that it could happen pretty soon now that Mayfield is gone. Elliott said,
"We haven't announced what we're doing, but if that (Mayfield's firing) has happened, as far as that seat being open and that's a possibility, I think we need to talk about that. Getting in sooner rather than later might be a good thing. I haven't talked to Ray about any of those circumstances but I have talked to him some about next year, but have not really come to a final agreement. Now I guess we might have to speed things up a little bit."
It may not be a done deal, but I'd be pretty surprised if Elliott didn't end up in the #19, given that he's talking about speeding up talks between himself and Ray so that he can possibly get into the car before the end of the season to get started on next year. I really hope this works out as well for Elliott as he wants it to - I have my doubts about the only reason that the #19 team has struggled this season is because of Jeremy. He was in the Chase two years in a row and I don't think he suddenly forgot how to drive. So I hope Elliott doesn't encounter some of the same problems at Evernham Motorsports that led him to leave Robert Yates Racing.
This is disappointing news for some Michael Waltrip fans who were still holding out hope that Elliott would drive the #00 for Michael Waltrip Racing. But I kind of doubted that was going to happen. It wouldn't look good if MWR took both of RYR's drivers (and a major sponsor). Beyond that, when I saw Elliott at the Tom Baldwin Memorial Golf Outing in June, he seemed to have a subtly negative attitude towards Michael when his name came up. I don't know what that was about - someone else who noticed it attributed it to bitterness that Michael had signed his teammate, but as it turned out Elliott is going to end up leaving himself.
Turns out there's no need to speculate who would take Elliott's place in the #38 - Robert Yates said today that David Gilliland could race the #38 as soon as next week, if Elliott left. Which is a wise idea since it would give Gilliland some much needed experience on the Cup level. Only thing is that Gilliland wouldn't be eligible for Rookie of the Year in 2007, but I think it's more important for him to get started on getting acclimated to racing Cup since he's got so little experience on any level in Nascar, let alone on the Cup level.
Since all parties seem to be willing to move forward, I'd guess that we will end up seeing Elliott in the #19 next weekend, and Gilliland in the #38.
Posted by silverdsl at 01:52 PM | Comments (0)
August 02, 2006
The Two Sides of Elliott Sadler
I find Elliott Sadler a little perplexing. On one hand there's this guy who's outstanding with the fans, ultra-nice, a great race car driver, has a very family-friendly image in public, represents his sponsor exceedingly well and seems about as candid and forth-coming as he can possibly be in this sport. Yet there's this other Elliott Sadler that occasionally surfaces that really seems to irk even some of his die-hard fans. Few people share all of themselves with everyone and the vast majority of people who are any kind of celebrity have a public persona that might be very different than their private persona. I know full well that just because someone seems one way in the media or at appearances with fans doesn't mean they're necessarily that way all the time. I think most fans realize that we don't truly know the people that we idolize even though sometimes it seems that way. But I think most fans would like to think that when they meet someone that they're a fan of that they are encountering more of the "real" person than not.
And I think it's hard for some fans to think that they're getting a taste of the "real" Elliott when he says one thing and then sometimes does another. Like saying that he was staying at Robert Yates Racing, then using the "out" in his contract to leave, the second time in his career that he's left an organization he's been contractually obligated to before the contract was over. Or when Elliott indicates that he doesn't drink alcohol, when in reality it's clear that he does. When I was at the Tom Baldwin Memorial Golf Outing in June, someone offered Elliott a beer and he said something along the lines of "I don't drink that stuff." In all fairness that could have referred to the specific kind of beer he was offered, but given that I had seen at least one other "I don't drink" comment from him, I was kind of guessing that he was trying to claim that he doesn't drink at all. Which is beyond laughable considering how many photos there are on the web of Elliott holding beer or what is likely other alcoholic beverages. In fact, it was so hilarious that he made that remark, I seriously considered asking him about why he has said he doesn't drink when obviously he does.
Of course a lot of the drivers, teams and sponsors say one thing, when they might really think something else entirely. Or they spin and hide the full details about things that happen. Elliott is hardly alone in that regard and it makes it hard to know when someone says something whether it's trust-worthy or whether it's the full story. For example, just last week Steve Park said in an interview on XM that sponsorship for his ride with BIll Davis Racing hadn't been able to be finalized for reasons that he didn't fully know. Thing is that he likely did know, at least partially, what those reasons were since at least three sources have said in one form or another that Steve's sponsor wasn't approved by Nascar - I have a really hard time believing that those people know but Steve didn't. Given that one of those people was Claire B. Lang who had just talked to Steve, there's a very good chance she got that information from Steve himself off-the-record! Now, I understand that Steve probably wasn't free to talk about the sponsor not getting approved, but I find it very difficult to sort through exactly what the "real" story is when it's hard to know whether or not someone is being forth-coming. Which it appears Elliott might not always be, in spite of him saying to me at the same golf event that he will answer any question that a fan asks him honestly.
Then there was the whole My Space mess, and I still have no clue what Elliott or his "people" were thinking with that one. On one hand it's completely understandable that they would want to have an official My Space profile for Elliott, since there are many fake My Spaces for any number of the drivers. But what I don't get is why the initial profile, which was clearly a personal page meant for his friends was advertised on his official fan club website. There were references to things that weren't so family-friendly and the only people who could be friended were those who knew him, coincidentally many of them seeming to be scantily-clad women with big boobs. Naturally many of his fans were not amused. Actually a lot of them were horrified by what they saw in that profile. Now I think Elliott has the right to do whatever he wants in his personal life, as do all the drivers. They drink, they party, some of them have casual relationships, etc... But given Nascar's family-friendly image, if the drivers are going to do things like that they need to be careful to keep it under wraps as much as possible - and advertising a My Space that makes reference to a lot of those things is definitely not the way to go. Fact is, that a lot of the fans, and many of the teams and sponsors, are conservative and they aren't all that accepting of certain things, some of which was made reference to that My Space profile. Eventually that profile was cleaned up and made into something much more geared towards the fans and Elliott created a new personal profile, which he eventually made private, a very smart move. That's the way it should have been done in the first place, and it's really puzzling that a driver who is normally so aware of image-related issues, wouldn't think that the original My Space profile would clash with the way he presents himself publically to fans and potentially cause some problems for him, which it did.
I understand that Elliott and those around him likely made a decision at some point that he was better off having a squeaky clean image in public - and that's certainly not unusual for many of the drivers. I also think, as I made mention of above, that Elliott has the right to live his life the way that he feels is best. I like Elliott tremendously even though I don't always agree with some of the things that he says and does - but that's true of everyone that I'm a fan of. But I find that with most other drivers or other atheletes, there's a smoother blend between their public and personal personas. With Elliott it's like there's two sides to him that he tries to keep separate and he's not always successful.
Posted by silverdsl at 01:24 PM | Comments (0)
July 21, 2006
Robert Yates Responds and it's Not Pretty
Elliott Sadler had kind words for Robert Yates and everyone at Robert Yates Racing today when he addressed the media but he might be regretting that now after he reads what Yates said about him and others. I have to say that after reading this article on Nascar.com it's very clear why Dale Jarrett and Sadler are leaving RYR, as well as UPS. This is a sinking ship. Instead of taking the slightest bit of blame for the sad shape that his organization is in, Yates lists a laundry list of other people and entities who he feels are at fault.
He feels it's Michael Waltrip and Toyota's fault for offering Jarrett a deal too good to pass up. I have no doubt that they did give Jarrett an excellent deal. But perhaps if RYR was an organization where Jarrett felt he could finish his career on a good note, where he might add to his win total and possibly be in the Chase, maybe he would still be in the #88. Maybe if Yates had ensured that the #88 was a competitive ride this season, it would have given UPS hope for the future and they would have stuck with RYR instead of following Jarrett to MWR. That both Jarrett and UPS are willing to take a risk with a brand-new team and manufacturer, where there is no guarantee of success, rather than stay with an established organization where they got eight wins together, speaks volumes to me about the sad state of affairs at RYR. That is not Michael or Toyota's fault.
Yates went on to say that Sadler started thinking about leaving last season when he found out how much money Jamie McMurray got to change teams,
"When Jamie McMurray told him how much money he was going to make he's been strung out since then. It's got him so unfocused. That's just my opinion. I'm sure he doesn't feel that way, but that's when I noticed it."
Unbelievable! Yates is implying that Sadler is greedy and that the only reason that he's leaving is because he wants more money. Futhermore, he's accusing Sadler of being so distracted by dreams of how much money he might make, that he was unable to fully concentrate on racing. I think that Yates is entitled to his own opinions about the reasons why Sadler might be leaving, but to actually vocalize it to the media? Ridiculous and insulting. Show some respect to a driver who has been nothing but courteous towards you publically.
It stands in stark contrast to Sadler's comments this afternoon where he praised everyone at RYR, including Robert and Doug Yates, and spoke of his committment to working as hard as he can for the remainder of the season to get the best results possible in the #38. In addition, Sadler has spoke more than once earlier this season about how focused he was on the #38 and trying to turn their season around. Of course drivers say things they don't mean all the time, but given how strongly Sadler spoke at times, I have a hard time believing that he was as unfocused due to monetary concerns as Yates says he was. If Sadler was preoccupied with something, I'd guess it was how poor his season has been. Race car drivers are intensely competitive and this season has to have been incredibly frustrating for Sadler, to have not been able to get anywhere near the results that he knows he's capable of. That's more likely what's been on his mind.
Former general manager, Eddie D'Hondt, who was fired several months ago, doesn't escape Yates's ire either. Yates blames D'Hondt for the "out" clause that gave Sadler, and RYR, a way to break the contract if the team didn't perform. I suspect that many other driver's contracts also have similar clauses, but Yates says,
"I didn't like the contract. It wasn't written by a professional."
Hello! You are the owner - if you don't like the contract, then have it done differently! And it's amazing to me that in this day and age, when lawyers are involved in absolutely everything, that a contract can be signed by either party that is any way unprofessional. In fact, I have a hard time believing it.
Yates also refers to philisophical differences with D'Hondt, which he says led to D'Hondt being fired. What are those differences? Well, for one, D'Hondt, wanted to do what virtually every single other large organization does - develop young drivers in lower series! As if that's a bad thing! Yates says,
"He wanted to pretty much follow Jack Roush's deal. The difference between Jack and myself is he could do numbers. I'm a one-track mind and he's a multiple-track deal. I can't focus on so many different things."
If he can't focus on multiple things at the same time, then how is he an owner? He's got multiple teams, multiple drivers, multiple sponsors, etc... But more than that, it boggles my mind that he was against developing young talent. Particularly since one reason RYR is screwed right now is because they don't have young drivers who are ready to move up from a lower series seemlessly into the vacancies they now have. Oh sure, they have Stephen Leicht, but he's 19-years old and I highly doubt that he is anywhere ready to race Cup full-time in 2007. It is absolutely essential for organizations to have driver development programs and work with young drivers so they are prepared for the future and don't get caught with their pants down when a driver (or two) leaves for another organization. I would guess that is one of the differences as to how to achieve success for the organization that Sadler referred to this morning.
I'd guess that another difference is the lack of a large engineering program as compared to other organizations. RYR has only six engineers, as compared to 15-20 for other organizations. Jarrett noted that this was one concern he had, and I would agree that presents a problem. As much as some who are "old school" might be resistent, engineers are absolutely essential to success in this sport. With only six engineers, it doesn't seem like that area isn't a priority at RYR. I'm sure the engineers they do have work hard, but I doubt that they can do as much as organizations with twice as many engineers. Until RYR gets their engineering program up to speed with everyone else's, which in all fairness isn't always easy because it costs money, I think they will continue to struggle - increasingly teams are relying more and more on engineers to guide their efforts and there is no way of getting around that.
Darrell Waltrip agrees that RYR is in bad shape. He apparently said that losing Jarrett and Sadler means that RYR's Cup program is beyond repair, which may be a little extreme, but might not be all that far off the mark as losing two drivers and a primary sponsor is a major blow. Yates was not pleased with D.W. He said,
"He don't have to say that I'm never going to fix it. He can say I suck. He can report the facts. But he can bite my ass when he says I'll never get it fixed."
First of all, isn't saying that he sucks as bad or worse than saying that his program is beyond repair? Secondly, D.W., whether he's correct or not, has the right to his own opinions. And I have to agree with D.W. - until RYR gets with the times, realizes the value of driver development, why it's important for there to be an emphasis on engineering and addresses the other issues they have in a way that is in keeping with the way the sport has advanced, then I don't see how they can possibly get strong results. The fact of the matter is that other teams have passed them by and the longer they go without updating their organizational philosophy, the harder it may be for them to catch up.
What really gets me though is that Yates spent a lot of time blaming others for the failings of RYR. But he leaves out the one person who is ultimately responsible - himself. As owner, he allowed his organization to get to a place where two drivers and a sponsor walked out the door. the blame for those things falls on his shoulders. As owner, he needs to find a way to elevate RYR back into an organization that fields cars that can win races and compete for Championships. But I'm not sure that he's going to be able to do it.
Posted by silverdsl at 09:01 PM | Comments (0)
Elliott Sadler Speaks
Last night I was going to write an entry in jest with my predictions about what Elliott Sadler would say when he met with the media today. I never got around to it, but I wish I did because I would be looking a little like Nostradamous today! Since no team had an announcement scheduled for today, I figured that Elliott would say that he hadn't signed a deal for a new ride yet, regardless of what the reality is, and I was correct about that, although Elliott says that he is talking to multiple teams. I also figured that Elliott would bend over backwards to speak highly of Robert Yates Racing - and he did. Almost every driver speaks well of the organization that they're leaving, even if they think they are headed downhill fast, or in Elliott's case if they and their former team "disagree on the direction the sport is going in." The only thing that I would have guessed last night is that Elliott would talk about this being a mutual decision, whereas today his comments indicated that is was pretty much his decision to leave RYR. Of course making these kind of predictions is pretty easy for anyone, since often the drivers (and teams) say the same things whenever there's a personnel change.
I think what was most interesting to me about Elliott's comments was how much he kept going back to his reason for leaving, that he and Robert Yates had a difference of opinion about the direction the sport was heading in and what it was going to take to make the organization successful. He said,
“I just think it’s a difference of opinion. All of you are media, but you all do it different ways also. It’s like each race team – we’re all here racing but we all do it in different types of ways. It’s not that one way is bad and one way is good, it’s just that everybody has a difference of opinion. I’m not gonna sit here and say that my way is the right way and somebody else’s way is the wrong way. I think Doug and Robert are doing good things at their shop. They’re making a lot of commitments to a lot of people to turn their shop and their race teams around and get it back to the old Robert Yates Racing, but sometimes people just don’t agree on things. It doesn’t make one right or wrong. It doesn’t make this person a bad person or the other person a bad person, it’s just sometimes you don’t agree on which way you think the sport is heading. We just have a difference of opinion on that. We tried to work through it and it didn’t work out."
In some regards Elliott makes it sound very basic - we had a difference of opinion, so we parted ways. But I think a difference of opinion about the direction an organization is headed in is something pretty major, particularly in light of the fact that he's not the only one who had some concerns about where RYR was going in the future, given the recent departures of Dale Jarrett and UPS as well.
Elliott didn't detail just exactly what the differences between himself and Yates were. But I would guess that he must have had some questions about whether the moves they were planning on making were ones that would really improve the performance of the car to the point where he was going to regularly contend for wins and potentially win a Championship. Because that is what this sport is all about, particularly for a driver of Elliott's caliber. I'm guessing that Elliott won't have too much trouble finding a team that shares his philosphy about the direction the sport is headed in, but I have to wonder how easily RYR is going to find drivers, and a sponsor, who share their vision. It was bad enough when >Dale Jarrett left, but that could be chalked up to a veteran driver looking for one more challenge before he retired or that a Toyota team lured him away with a lot of money. But when Elliott leaves and says very clearly that it's because of the direction the organization is headed in, I think that sends a message, and not a very good one, about what's going on at RYR.
Of course there has been much said about Elliott going to the #19. But according to what he said today, he doesn't have a new ride and is still in the process of talking to teams. Elliott mentioned that once it became known that his services were going to be available for next season his phone was ringing off the hook with calls from interested teams and as it turns out there are going to be more seats available than anyone knows right now. My sense is that Elliott might have had a team in mind that he was going to sign with, but after getting all these phone calls from teams who he didn't know had openings, he decided that it might be a better idea to wait and listen to a few more offers. He said,
"I actually did not know that there were that many seats available for next year until this week, so now I’m kind of re-thinking my thought process and what I think I need to do to get in a really good race car."
That's smart because by talking to all of these teams he can ensure that he gets the best deal possible for the most competitive ride that's available. And make no mistake - unless a driver like Jimmie Johnson or Dale Earnhardt, Jr. becomes available, which isn't happening, Elliott is the hottest commodity in the garage area right now and will have his choice of some very good rides.
I think Elliott is in an excellent position in comparison to a lot of drivers who find themselves looking for a new ride. Some drivers have to worry about things like whether their performance is good enough in comparision to what the team is looking for, whether the sponsor thinks their marketable enough and so many other factors that are out of their control. But what team wouldn't want Elliott? He's young, he's extremely marketable, he's got a huge fanbase, he's got an engaging personality, he's extremely fan-friendly, he would represent any sponsor well, and most importantly he's shown he can get results when he has a good racecar. So the decision of where he ends up is very much in his hands, because he will likely end up with a number of good offers to choose from, as compared to some drivers who might end up with multiple offers, but they aren't always with great teams.
As for where Elliott is actually going to end up, well, I'd say that where there's smoke there's usually fire, so there's probably something to the rumors of him going to the #19. That doesn't mean he's going to ultimately end up there, but I'd guess that's one of the teams that Elliott is talking to. I still see him as a better fit for Red Bull Racing and I'd love to see him at Michael Waltrip Racing, but I suspect that he's going to end up with an established organization. Where ever he goes, I just hope he will get to race up front a lot more often than he's been able to do this season.
Posted by silverdsl at 02:39 PM | Comments (0)
July 20, 2006
Elliott Sadler Will Drive For Another Team in 2007
There have been a lot of rumors floating around all season that Elliott Sadler was looking to find a new ride for 2007 and leave the #38 that he currently drives for Robert Yates Racing. Those rumors picked up speed last week when it was reported that Elliott had a deadline this weekend by which he had to tell RYR what his intentions were, all of which culminated in another rumor that indicated that he was going to take Jeremy Mayfield's place in the #19 at Evernham Motorsports. Apparently, in spite of Elliott's denials not long ago and his other comments that indicated that he was planning on staying at RYR, there was some truth to those rumors after all. It was announced today by RYR that Elliott had asked for, and was granted, his release at the end of the 2006 season. As of the writing of this post, there is no word on who Elliott will end up racing for in 2007, but I'd guess that there will likely be an annoucement soon.
I think this is going to be tremendously upsetting for many of Elliott's fans. A lot of fans in general have trouble with drivers changing organizations, because it seems that many view it as being disloyal, even if the organization they're currently with is in shambles, like RYR is and it's in the driver's best interest to leave. Fans also look at things from a practical standpoints - they've often invested a huge amount of money in clothing and other merchandise that is going to be outdated a lot sooner than they'd like. I don't buy a lot of driver clothing and merchandise to begin with, but when I do I'm more drawn to things that just have the driver's name on it or at most their number so if their are changes I don't feel silly continuing to wear the shirt or jacket. Of course the reality is that there is no shame in wearing clothes that are associated with a driver's old team because wearing clothing with an old number is still showing support to a favorite driver and it speaks to continued support. But everyone wants to feel "current."
There are other issues as well. At a recent fan club meeting that took place probably only two months ago at most, Elliott indicated that he would be staying at RYR. Of course no driver can openly say that they are talking to other teams when they are still under contract to their current team. But most fans believe that when a driver says something, that is the absolute, final truth, even though drivers are just as prone to spin things or say what fans want to hear, as much as anyone else in the garage area. I'd like to think that the drivers say the real deal more often than not, but I also understand that sometimes it's difficult to be completely upfront and honest. Some fans have difficulty with this. It's almost as if they feel betrayed when what a drivers says isn't what ends up happening. But in this sport things can change very quickly and it's not always possible for the drivers to speak their minds fully and openly.
That's not to say that Elliott wasn't telling the truth at the fan club meeting about staying at RYR - at that point in time he might have really thought he was going to stay. But I've noticed all along that Elliott has given himself a lot of wiggle room by saying that he intended on staying at RYR or that his focus was on the #38, rather than saying that he was definitely, absolutely staying at RYR. And when he said he hadn't talked to other teams, he might not have personally, but his business manager sure could have been doing a lot of listening and talking. The fact of that matter is that RYR is an organization in turmoil, and even if he was going to end up staying, I think it was in Elliott's best interests to listen to what other opportunities other teams were offering, especially if some of those teams might offer him a better chance of regularly getting to Victory Lane than RYR. Elliott needs to do what's best for himself, even if it might not be exactly what his fans want him to do.
I think this is a huge blow to RYR. Since Dale Jarrett has also announced he is leaving RYR at the end of the season to drive for Michael Waltrip Racing, RYR now has to find two new drivers for their Cup cars, plus a sponsor to replace UPS. Although RYR is an organization with more resources than PPI or Morgon-McClure Motorsports, losing two drivers, somewhat unexpectantly, plus a major sponsor, is pretty much a disaster. Especially when one considers that they also fired their general manager, Eddie D'Hondt, earlier this season. While RYR will surely do everything they can to get their organization back on it's feet and field competitive cars, I have to wonder how it's going to look to potential replacement sponsors, or drivers for that matter, that both of their drivers fled for other teams in the same year, one going so far as to use an "out" clause in his contract, rather than finish out the remainder of the contract. That Elliott used that "out" clause speaks to his lack of confidence that RYR could provide him with opportunities to succeed in comparision to other teams. It's impossible to predict what's going to happen, but I think it may be tough going for RYR for the rest of this season and into 2007.
At the moment, I don't know where Elliott is going to end up, but wherever it might be, I hope that he's happy and that he is able to race up front a lot more than he is now!
Posted by silverdsl at 11:50 AM | Comments (0)
July 14, 2006
Interesting Jayski Rumor
This one is definitely all rumor at the moment as it's one of Jayski's "I heard" items that's completely unsourced so there's no telling how much truth it holds. However, it's one scenario that I've thought of and it makes some sense. Jayski says,
Sadler to the #19? Mayfield to Toyota? hearing Elliott Sadler, current driver of the #38 M&M's Ford for RYR, will go to he #19 Evernham Motorsports Dodge with current driver there, Jeremy Mayfield going to one of the three Toyota Teams, most likely Michael Waltrip Racing and the #00 car.(7-14-2006)
At this point in time Evernham Motorsports is a stronger organization than Robert Yates Racing, so I can see why the idea of joining Evernham might appeal to Elliott Sadler. I can also see why Evernham might want him - Elliott is younger than Jeremy Mayfield, I think he has more of an engaging and dynamic personality than Mayfield does, he would represent any sponsors at Evernham extremely well and he's certainly capable of winning on the Cup level. Of course the results have been extremely poor for the #19 car this season, but it's a car that has been in the Chase twice before so it seems to me that with the right mix of people Evernham could get it back to where it was just last season, whether that's with Jeremy, Elliott or someone else.
As for Jeremy joining Michael Waltrip Racing, I think he's likely in the mix for the #00, even if he doesn't end up going there. That he was twice in the Chase probably holds a lot of appeal for both Michael and Burger King/Domino's because it shows that he knows what to do to get results. For whatever reason things are no longer working out for him at Evernham, but he very recently got good results there, so I'm quite sure he is capable of duplicating those results in the future. I think Jeremy's personality is a little more laidback than some other drivers, but he seems like a pretty good guy, who would fit in well at MWR as a teammate to Michael and Dale Jarrett. Of course Jeremy's hometown is Owensboro, Kentucky, the very same place where Michael is from so they also have that in common.
The only problem with the scenario of Jeremy leaving the #19 is that he is supposedly signed through 2008 so any team interested in his services for next season would have to negotiatie his release including, I would think, a potential buy out the remainder of his contract. However, Ray Evernham might not be all that thrilled with Jeremy anymore, particularly in light of some critical comments that Jeremy made publically last week. So he might be very willing to let Jeremy go early, particularly if he feels that a different driver would help turn the fortunes of the #19 team around.
ETA: Apparently it's been reported on Speed that M&Ms might follow Elliott to the #19 car. I think M&Ms and Elliott are a very good match for each other so it would be great news if they were to follow him to a new team!
Posted by silverdsl at 02:57 PM | Comments (0)
June 20, 2006
More Rumors About Elliott Sadler Leaving Robert Yates Racing
Over the weekend, more rumors circulated that Elliott Sadler is unhappy at Robert Yates Racing, particularly since Dale Jarrett has announced that he is leaving at the conclusion of this season, and that Sadler would like to leave for potentially greener pastures. That rumor was swiftly denied by Robert Yates yesterday. He said,
"That's not what he's telling me. That's all I can really say. I guess the grandstand can start speculating anything. So far, he hasn't communicated that with me yet."
Problem is that I'm not sure that Sadler would tell Yates that he was looking around for a new ride. Apparently Sadler also said to fans at a recent fan club meeting that he was planning on staying at RYR, but what choice does he have but to say that? If he left RYR, especially before his contract ended, it wouldn't be a very popular decision. In addition, Sadler can't really tip off RYR that he might be entertaining other offers, particularly if there's a chance that in the end he will end up staying there. Just about all the drivers say that they would like to stay with their current organization because of how it would sound if they said that they wanted to leave, but plans change quickly - just ask Casey Mears.
In this sport denials are sometimes the first signal that there is truth to a rumor. I happen to think that with this many rumors about Sadler, there must be some truth there somewhere, even if he's just been listening to a few offers to see what's out there, as opposed to actively looking for a new ride. I think I said the last time that these rumors came up that it would be a good idea for Sadler to at least listen to what other teams are offering so he can make the decision that's best for him based on the most information possible and I still think that. Sadler might miss out on a really outstanding opportunity if he doesn't at least listen casually.
In addition, Sadler might not be seriously thinking about leaving Yates now, but that could change if the results this season don't improve. Subpar results week after week have a way of making a driver very unhappy. Elliott's plans could change even further if he doesn't like what RYR tells him about who his new teammate might be and what else RYR plans on doing to right their sinking ship. The organization isn't in great shape right now, and while I don't think they're so far off that their problems can't be fixed, there may be other organizations that are on the rise that mght be interested in Sadler's services where he might be able to get very strong results.
I think the M&Ms sponsorship fits Sadler very well, so for that reason I would hate to see him leave RYR. However, Sadler needs to make the decisions that are going to be best for him and his career. That may end up staying at RYR and helping that organization improve. Or that might be going elsewhere, if he feels another team might offer him more chances to get to Victory Lane and contend for a Championship, something he's not doing this season for RYR.
Posted by silverdsl at 01:01 PM | Comments (0)
June 04, 2006
Photo of the Day - Elliott Sadler
I went to the second annual Tom Baldwin Memorial Golf Open last week. I'll blog about it in more detail sometime this week but the highlight was definitely seeing Elliott Sadler - he was so awesome!
Posted by silverdsl at 09:52 PM | Comments (0)
May 26, 2006
Robert Yates Racing Has a Lot to Work on
Yesterday I listened to a session that Robert and Doug Yates did with the media that was played on XM, in which they discussed the challenges facing their organization. Two things came up in this session that I'm sure others might think are minor issues, really highlighted for me the depth of the problems that Robert Yates Racing has to overcome in relation to the way the organization functions.
First Claire B. Lang from XM asked about a quote attributed to Doug Yates which talked about them getting their "arms around our company." Yates actually said that it was a nice quote but he never said it. Claire B. then pointed out that is was, get this, in the official press release sent out by RYR when they announced that they were parting ways with Eddit D'Hondt! It was then admitted that the quotes had been written by the RYR public relations staff and that Yates had never seen the press release before it was sent out! That was shocking to me. It's standard for public relations people to make up quotes by their clients but it's imperitive, particularly if there is likely to be a lot of media attention, that the quotes should be approved before they are used. Otherwise, it can be very embarassing as Yates found out. It also indicates that not everyone in the company is on the same page, nor are they working together.
The other thing that came up in the session is that, according to Claire B., Doug Yates had no idea that there was an "out" clause in Elliott Sadler's contract. As one of the people intimately involved with the operations at RYR, because his father owns the company, how can he not know this? I don't expect him to know everything about the driver's contracts but it seems to me an "out" clause is a pretty big thing not to know about. Especially when Sadler just discussed it with the media earlier that day! It seems a little surprising that the Yates didn't go over with their PR staff some of the questions they might expect to get and what some responses could be.
It seems to me that along with making improvements in the technical and performance areas, RYR has to improve the way information flows in the organization. That will also only help them in the long-run.
Posted by silverdsl at 11:38 AM | Comments (0)
May 25, 2006
Elliott Sadler Does Have an "Out" in His Contract
A couple of days ago a spokesperson from Robert Yates Racing said that Elliott Sadler is under contract with RYR though 2008, probably hoping to take his name out of the silly season mix. Well, as it turns out what that spokesperson neglected to mention is that Sadler does in fact, as rumored, have an "out" clause in his contract. That means that while he's signed for the next couple of years, he could get out of his contract. Of course Sadler says that he's not going to use that "out" clause and that he has every intention of staying at RYR. But that's what they all say. Every driver claims that they want to re-sign or stay at their present organization. Every driver claims that they like where they are, even if they are really miserable. Very, very, very few drivers publically talk about wanting and actively looking for a new ride, even if that's exactly what they're doing. I'm listening to Sadler on XM and he just said very emphatically that no team has offered him any money. Well, that doesn't mean that he's not listening to some inquires from some teams that might be interested in his services. In fact, that might be wise, in case RYR can't turn things around so he knows what might be available to him in the future. I wouldn't at all be surprised to see Sadler end up with a different team in 2007.
Sadler is talking now about taking RYR on his shoulders, being in the car as much as possible, in the Busch side and on the Cup side, testing and doing everything he can to turn things around. It's going to take a lot more than just Sadler making the effort - RYR's issues are going to need quite a bit of effort from everyone in the organization to resolve. I hope Sadler realizes that he can't do it himself - if he, and RYR, puts too much pressure on himself, I don't think that would be a good thing.
Posted by silverdsl at 04:10 PM | Comments (0)
Elliott Sadler Back in #90 Busch Car
I find this curious, but considering the turmoil that Robert Yates Racing is experiencing overall, maybe I shouldn't. On May 12th, it was announced that Elliott Sadler would be stepping out of the #90 Citifinancial Busch car for the remainder of the season so that RYR's driver development drivers, Matt McCall and Stephen Leicht, could split time in the car. That made a great deal of sense considering Dale Jarrett is leaving for Michael Waltrip Racing next season, and RYR might want either McCallor Leicht to take Jarrett's place in the #88, but they both need more experience. However, when it was announced that Eddit D'Hondt was out as General Manager at RYR, it was also announced that Sadler would be back in the #90. But I noticed on the entry list for Charlotte that Matt McCall was also entered in the Citifinancial #92, so I figured that the plan was for Sadler to be in the #90 for the races he had committed to from the start of the season to make the sponsor happy, and for those Busch races that Sadler would be in RYR would field a second car for the development drivers.
But now the #92 has been withdrawn, leaving only Sadler entered in the race. That seems strange to me if RYR is really eyeing either McCall or Leicht for the #88 next season. Likely it's only a one-race thing and McCall and Leicht will see plenty of Busch series action but, it seems to me if that really is the plan, they would want them both to get as much seat time as possible. But at this point, who knows what the plan is for RYR? Firing D'Hondt probably means that they are going to take an entirely new approach on many things. One thing is for sure they really need to get their act together.
Posted by silverdsl at 12:59 PM | Comments (0)
May 10, 2006
Elliott Sadler Stepping Out of the #90 Busch Car?
Hmmm.... according to bgnracing.com:
A source with Robert Yates Racing said Tuesday during the test session at the Lowe's Motor Speedway, that the team has been informed that Elliott Sadler is stepping out from behind the wheel of the No. 90 for a while to allow the development drivers, Stephen Leicht and Matt McCall to get more seat-time. Both Leicht and McCall are hoping to run the Carquest 300 at LMS at the end of the month. McCall however had a tough day testing on Tuesday after wrecking his machine. Leicht is entered in Darlington this weekend while McCall will run the ARCA event in Kentucky.
Why would Elliott Sadler step out of his Busch ride? The first thought that comes to mind is that he wants to concentrate on his Cup efforts since the #38 team has been somewhat inconsistent this season. But one also has to wonder if Stephen Leicht and Matt McCall are going to get extra seat-time because Robert Yates Racing (or Elliott) knows that there is going to be a vacancy in the #88 that they will need to fill. I hate to see young drivers rushed up into Cup before they are ready so if Yates is entertaining any thoughts of putting Leict or McCall in the #88 or even in a third Cup car in 2007, it's a good thing to have them run as many Busch races as possible. Since I like Sadler tremendously I will miss him in the Busch races but since the results haven't been very good for him in Busch this season, he may not miss racing those races. I do wonder how the sponsor of the #90, CitiFinancial, feels about not having Sadler in their car anymore?
Posted by silverdsl at 03:22 PM | Comments (0)
April 28, 2006
Elliott Sadler Looking For a New Ride?
According to Tim Tuttle of SI.com, Elliott Sadler has been putting out feelers to other teams to see if there's any possible rides that might become available to him. Sadler has one more year left on his contract at Robert Yates Racing, but when has been locked into a contract stopped anyone in Nascar from making a change? Tuttle said in his column,
When Sadler arrived at Yates, he said it was a dream job, perhaps a lifetime job. And now? He's not so sure. Sources say Sadler is talking to other team owners looking for a deal. He'll be 31 on Sunday, and in a tight market for experienced, winning Cup drivers with plenty of years left, somebody likely will be interested.Sadler has a year remaining on his contract, and he may just be testing the waters in case things don't improve. Or he may be trying to create a situation like Kurt Busch and Jamie McMurray did last year by signing a year in advance and then letting the car owners work out a deal for an early release.
I'm sure many will be quick to dismiss this as a wild rumor, and there might even be a denial from Sadler himself. But I wouldn't dismiss it so fast. There were numerous rumors about Bobby Labonte looking to leave Joe Gibbs Racing, something that was inconcievable to many, and in spite of denials from Labonte, that's exactly what ended up happening. While not every rumor becomes reality, in many cases I think there is a grain of truth to many rumors. In a lot of ways it's smart for Sadler to start making some inquiries now even if he intends on staying with Yates through the end of his contract. This way he can get a sense of what rides might be open and some teams might start thinking towards the future and the possibility of signing him.
I think that Sadler's next contract will be an important one for him because at 31 (he turns 31 on Sunday) he is starting to become less of a young gun and more of a veteran driver. We all know how desirable the young guns are to teams and how much trouble the veterans can have if things don't go their way. So Sadler needs to put himself in a position where he has a long-term deal with a strong team. He will certainly be in demands if his services were available considering he is a driver who can race up front and win, he is extremely marketable, has an outstanding personality and attitude, and is very fan-friendly. In fact, I think Sadler's popularity is a huge asset for him because he has a tremendous and very loyal fan base. As much as driving skill is important, increasingly there are a lot of off-the-track factors which are key for teams as well when they are looking at drivers.
The organization that Sadler ends up with may very well be Yates. His results while at Yates have been the best of his career. Since becoming the driver of the #38 in 2003, Sadler started slow but has since won two races, 12 top fives and 37 top tens compared to one win, four top fives and 11 tops tens while he was with the Wood Brothers from 1999-2002. Sadler was in the Chase for the Championship in 2004 and a contender last season. While he is currently in 14th in the points and the team has struggled for consistency, the season is far from lost. Sadler and the #38 team are still very much capable of winning a few races and getting into the Chase.
But every driver dreams of not just winning some races and contending for the Championship but actually becoming Cup Champion. So even though Sadler has been successful at Yates, he may feel that there are other teams that would give him a better chance at getting that Championship. With the possibility of Dale Jarrett leaving Yates as well, I can see Yates making a big push to keep Sadler happy. If push came to shove I would guess that they would choose the younger Sadler over Jarrett, assuming they could come to terms with Sadler - that isn't to say that Jarrett is a lesser driver, simply the reality that often youth wins out these days. I'm interested to see whether Yates will try a crew chief change with the #38 even though they aren't that far down in points and Tommy Baldwin, Jr. is a relatively new hire with a good reputation. Often the crew chief is the first to go if expectations aren't met as quickly as everyone wants.
I've always liked Sadler so I really hope that if he is looking at other teams, he ends up in a good situation that will give him the best possible chance at winning - I would love to see him win that Championship some day too.
Posted by silverdsl at 07:22 AM | Comments (0)
February 16, 2006
Elliott Sadler Wins First Gatorade Duel
Two years ago Elliott Sadler was in Victory Lane after a Gatorade Duel to set the qualifying field for the Daytona 500 and history has repeated itself once more. By virtue of a great pit stop to put him out front, Elliott led 36 laps to win the first of two Gatorade 150s today. I'm a fan of Elliott's so I'm really happy to see him in Victory Lane! Of course it's not a points race so it's not the same as if he had won the 500 on Sunday but a win is a win. It's great for Elliott and his team that they've started off 2006 in one of the best ways possible with a win! The expectations are pretty high for the #38 team that they contend for the Chase for the Championship but they experienced problems last season that put them out. Maybe this win is a sign that they will make it this season - I certainly hope so!
There were a number of drivers who had to race their way in during this race - I was really pulling for Kevin Lepage. Last year he raced his way in when no one thought he had a chance in hell of making it. Well, not only did he race his way in but he finished 9th, an incredible finish for a single-car, independent team that has minimal personnel and resources. So prior to this race Lepage was interviewed and he said that he thought his chances were very good for making it. I wasn't as optimistic as Lepage but he did note that they have some help from Roush and Yates, presumably having a Roush-Yates engine in his car. Well, Lepage was exactly right - he did manage race his way in! When he got out of the car he was celebrating like he had won the race and I loved seeing that kind of enthusiasm and excitment! Odds are he won't be able to repeat his 9th place finish of last season in the 500 but he will be in the race and that's awesome for him and his team.
Unfortunately, good fortune for Lepage was bad fortune for Mike Skinner - it appeared that he had the second spot locked up but right at the end of the race Bill Elliott was able to race his way past Skinner to race his way in. That's a shame because Skinner is a teammate of Michael Waltrip's and it would have been good for Michael to have Skinner to draft with during the 500. Elliott would have had a spot regardless because he is a past Cup champion but he would only have used that provisional if he didn't make it in during this race. That apparently means that regardless of what happens in the second race Robby Gordon is guaranteed a spot based on his time from Sunday but don't ask me to explain exactly how that works because it's way too complicated for me!
There was one very odd incident in this race. There was a caution after Chad Chaffin blew a tire so under the yellow a number of cars checked up to avoid getting into debris. But Sterling Marlin didn't slow down in time and ended up running into and spinning Dale Jarrett. It appeared that Marlin suffered the worst of the damage but I'm sure that the #88 team is going to have some work to do to get their car fixed as well. What's most amazing to me is that when he was interviewed post-race Sterling admitted that the reason the wreck happened was that he took his eyes off the track for a minute to shut down a cooling fan and that's when everyone slowed down in front of him. First of all, I have no clue where his spotter was because he should have warned Sterling that everyone was checking up. But also I can't believe that Sterling actually took his eyes off the track to such a degree that he caused a wreck under caution. That's a pretty big oops that can't be happening. Sterling's probably kind of embarassed about that and he's going to have to explain further to Nascar as he was called to their hauler post-race.
Now comes the second duel which Michael will be taking part in...
Posted by silverdsl at 04:49 PM | Comments (0)
January 30, 2006
Elliott Sadler Joins Trackside
Now that Rusty Wallace got a job working for ESPN/ABC he doesn't have time to appear on Trackside on Speed which is a good thing for those of us who didn't really enjoy Rusty on the show. I'm thrilled to find out that his replacement, who will appear on the second half of the season, will be Elliott Sadler. I've always liked Elliott and I think he will do a good job on Trackside. Elliott has always seemed like he has a lot of personality but given the sometimes restrictive environment that Nascar operates in I don't know that he's always gotten to show as much of it as he and his fans might like. But the relaxed, feel-good format of Trackside should allow Elliott to let loose a little and have some fun. My only question is how open Elliott will be when it comes to expressing his opinions honestly but given the format of Trackside I'm not sure that will be necessary. As long as he can joke around with the guests and think of some questions for them I think he'll be a fine addition.
The majority of fans also seem to think that adding Elliott to Trackside is a good idea which should show Speed that fans aren't always resistant to change and they don't hate everything.
Posted by silverdsl at 08:43 PM | Comments (0)
November 29, 2005
Slugger Labbe, Tommy Baldwin To Be Crew Chiefs of #88, #38 for Robert Yates Racing
I wonder if this was a package deal? Last season Tommy Baldwin was the crew chief for Kasey Kahne and Slugger Labbe was the crew chief for Jeremy Mayfield, both at Evernham Motorsports. In 2006 both are moving to Robert Yates Racing where they will also be crew chiefs, Labbe for the #88 of Dale Jarrett and Baldwin for the #38 of Elliott Sadler. I'd like to say that I think that both of these pairings will be fairly good ones but I have no idea what to think about how Labbe is going to do anywhere anymore. Granted he's been at Yates previously so they are familiar with him and he is familiar with them but it's been two seasons in a row that he's given up on the team he's been with and wanted out.
When he was released by Evernham Labbe said,
"We got in the Chase, and we've just been mediocre. I want to win and be in the top five every week."
Dale Jarrett is an excellent driver who is a two-time former Champion. However, the fates haven't been as kind to him in recent years. After being a multiple race winner from 1996-2002 Jarrett has only won two races over the past three years. In addition, he hasn't been a part of the Chase for the Championship either this season or last. So I have to wonder if Labbe is going to a team that will realistically be in the top five every week either on the track or in the points. He may very well make the #88 a stronger team but with how competitive things are in this sport I'm not sure they will be a Championship contending team which the #19 was. So will this end up being a third team in three years that Labbe leaves at the end of the season?
As for Tommy Baldwin I'm a little surprised that he's going to be Sadler's crew chief. When he left Evernham it was said that Baldwin was leaving to pursue his dream of having his own team, which he was going to do in partnership with Yates, possibly as soon as 2007. In fact, a press conference was scheduled, then cancelled to discuss those plans. Given the demands of having one's own team I would think that would make it difficult for Baldwin to also be a full-time crew chief so I figured that while they were getting the new team going he would function in some sort of consultant position at Yates. But he will in fact be on the #38 pit box each week so I'm not sure where that leaves his plans for a team. Which is probably a big disappointment to some Steve Park fans who were dreaming of a reunion for Steve with his childhood friend from Long Island.
I'd like to see Sadler have a little more success on the track. When he made the Chase in 2004 I was sure it meant that he was finally living up to expectations and I thought that he would build on that and be even better in 2005. That was not to be. After winning two races, getting eight top five's and fourteen top ten's, Sadler didn't win any races and had only one top five. He did have twelve top ten's and won four poles so it appears that the foundation is still there for the #38 to be a strong team. They just need to get back to the team they were in 2004 and hopefully Baldwin can help them do that.
Posted by silverdsl at 03:12 PM | Comments (0)
August 21, 2005
A Gamble That Didn't Work: Michael Waltrip Runs Out of Gas, Finishes 27th
Mayfield Wins... With the Same Strategy That Failed for Michael
For a while it was looking like Tony Eury, Jr. was a genius and Michael was going to get a much needed top five finish. But not much has gone Michael's way on the track lately and it was the same story today. Less than two laps from the end of the race when Michael was in fifth place, the #15 ran out of gas, dooming him to a 27th place finish. Meanwhile, Jeremy Mayfield, whose crew chief, Slugger Labbe was also trying the same pit strategy as Tony Eury, Jr., ended up winning the race. Labbe, Michael's old crew chief, even said after the race that they had stolen one and made a 20th place car into a first place car. The same was almost true for the #15. After a minor tangle with Mike Bliss, Michael's car didn't seem to be as good as it was early in the race and while he made some progress forward he wasn't running as far up in the field as they might have liked. So during a late caution they topped off on gas while others didn't hoping that they would gain track position as the race went along when others had to stop before the end. But they came up just short on fuel unfortunately for Michael.
During the truck race at IRP, Steve Park's crew chief ran him out of gas mid-race. I didn't come down too hard on that decision because like with Tony Eury, Jr. if the gamble had paid off it would have reaped the team tremendous benefits. In the situation with Steve it was what happened afterward on pit road that shouldn't have happened and pretty much ruined the race for him. Though I still think that Charlie Wilson should have played things safer because the good finishes for the #62 have been even fewer and far between than for the #15 team. In addition, Steve had a very good truck that race and it's likely he would have had a strong finish if not for running out of gas. However, Michael's car today didn't seem to be as good as it was during the first go-around this season at Michigan so I don't think he would have raced his way into the top ten without the strategy that Tony, Jr. used.
Yet again this was a race that featured tire problems for a number of the teams. Nascar had tried to address this problem by mandating that teams use the same degree of camber. But it didn't seem to pay off this race, though it's possible that there was something on the track that some drivers were running over. In fact that is a distinct possiblity considering that trash blocking grills was causing some engine overheating problems for a variety of teams. It's to be expected that there will be some problems like this but it seems unfortunate that so much was decided not by racing on the track but garbage from the stands.
One driver's season that seems to be in a nosedive is Elliott Sadler's. He was extremely strong in the first half of the season racing his way to nine top tens in the first sixteen races. But over the last seven races he's dropped ten spots in the points standings, putting him into 13th position, 66 points out of the Chase for the Championship. It's really unfortunate. Sadler is a great racer, a good guy and extremely fan-friendly. He's a driver that I would love to see in the Chase and someone who I would be thrilled if he were Champion one day. But it's looking like this year might not be his season to be in the Chase.
Meanwhile, with his win today, Mayfield has solidified a spot for himself in the Chase. He's in sixth place in the points and unless the rest of the season is an utter disaster for him, he's in. Mayfield is a driver who gets very little attention during races or from the fans. But he can drive a race car and he certainly showed that today, though a lot of the credit for the win has to go to Slugger Labbe for making the right decisions in the pits. Still, a driver who is given the lead still needs to be able to hang on to it and Mayfield did that.
Posted by silverdsl at 06:51 PM | Comments (0)