Earlier this week it was reported by Jim Utter with Motorsport.com that in 2016 Roush-Fenway Racing driver Elliott Sadler would be moving to JR Motorsports, taking sponsor OneMain Financial with him. Sadler previous ran select races for the organization in 2010, driving a car owned by Sprint Cup Series driver Dale Earnhardt Jr.
The move would definitely be an improvement of sorts, as RFR has been steadily declining as an organization, despite having one car lead the Xfinity Series points and the other three settled firmly in the top-10 in points. However, a move to JRM wouldn’t be too great of an improvement for the 40-year-old driver.
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Granted, JRM is a winning organization, a championship-winning organization, having won the 2014 series title with Chase Elliott. But checking Sadler’s statistics, he hasn’t set the Xfinity Series on fire with wins and results since 2012. He did finish runner-up in the points in 2011 and 2012, but when he made the switch to Joe Gibbs Racing and their Toyotas, one win in two seasons with a camp that somehow manages to win week-in and week-out with Kyle Busch doesn’t say much for his situation there.
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Anything is an improvement over RFR though. Week after week Sadler’s No. 1 Mustang is fast, and he’s in the top-five in points. But he isn’t fast enough. He’s been outran regularly in 2015, and it doesn’t look like he’ll be winning any time soon. A runner-up finish at Daytona in July was something to be proud of, but even then he earned that finish mostly on luck considering only a few laps before he was involved in a big accident.
Going to JRM may help Sadler get to Victory Lane more often. The JRM Camaros are Hendrick powered, for one, and there is no question Sadler will be near the front as always. But with the level of competition Sadler is now faced with in the Xfinity Series, it’s not going to be like it was in 2011 and 2012, when he was racing for Kevin Harvick, Inc./Richard Childress Racing.
Sadler is in the same camp as JRM driver Regan Smith. Both drivers have talent and the ability to win. But their time as Sprint Cup drivers has passed, and as more and more young drivers join the Xfinity ranks these guys are being pushed to the side here also. They’ll have the resources to contend, but their hopes of winning a title are growing slimmer and slimmer with each passing year.
There’s no arguing that RFR is a slowly sinking ship, and he cannot be blamed for wanting to leave while he can. He will win a few times with JRM, more than he has since leaving RCR in 2012. He will have an active presence on the track, in the garage, and ultimately in the point standings (much like his current situation). Plus, with Chase Elliott moving to the Sprint Cup Series to take over the No. 24 that’s being vacated by the departing Jeff Gordon, Sadler may very well be placed in the premiere JRM Camaro and may very well fare better than teammate Smith.
Be sure to weigh in below on whether or not Sadler’s move to JRM could result in a series championship.