NASCAR Xfinity Series: Elliott Sadler not returning full-time in 2019
By Asher Fair
Elliott Sadler has announced that he will not be returning to the NASCAR Xfinity Series as a full-time driver in the 2019 season.
JR Motorsports’ Elliott Sadler, who has driven full-time in either the NASCAR Cup Series or the NASCAR Xfinity Series in every season since the 1997 season, announced that he will not be returning to the Xfinity Series as a full-time driver next season in what would have been his 23rd season as a full-time NASCAR driver and his 11th season as a full-time Xfinity Series driver.
Sadler, 43, drove full-time in the Xfinity Series in the 1997 and 1998 seasons before driving full-time in the Cup Series from the 1999 season through the 2010 season. Since the 2011 season, he has driven full-time in the Xfinity Series each season.
Here is what Sadler, who currently drives the #1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet, had to say about stepping away from his role as a full-time Xfinity Series driver after this season reaches its conclusion in mid-November upon the completion of the Ford EcoBoost 300 a Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida.
After much consideration and many conversations with my family, I’ve decided this will be my last season racing full time in NASCAR. (Full Statement: https://t.co/iLQnNG215o) pic.twitter.com/cKEclUt55F
— Elliott Sadler (@Elliott_Sadler) August 15, 2018
Throughout his Cup Series career, Sadler has competed in 438 races and racked up three victories, 19 top five finishes, 69 top 10 finishes and eight pole positions. His career-high finish in the championship standings is his ninth place finish in the 2004 season. He has led 1,251 laps in Cup Series races. His average starting position is 21.5, and his average finishing position is 22.8.
Sadler recorded a career-high two victories in the 2004 Cup Series season. His most recent Cup Series victory came in the 2004 Pop Secret 500 at Auto Club Speedway (then California Speedway) in Fontana, California. The only Cup Series race in which he has competed since the 2013 season ended is the 2017 Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida.
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Throughout his Xfinity Series career, Sadler has competed in 383 races and racked up 13 victories, 102 top five finishes, 219 top 10 finishes and 18 pole positions. His career-high finishes in the championship standings are second place finishes, which he has recorded four times so far in his career.
Sadler finished in second in the standings in the 2011, 2012, 2016 and 2017 seasons, and he currently sits in a second place tie in the standings. He has led 2,042 laps in Xfinity Series races. His average starting position is 12.0, and his average finishing position is 12.5.
Sadler recorded a career-high four victories in the 2012 Xfinity Series season. His most recent Xfinity Series victory came in the 2016 VisitMyrtleBeach.com 300 at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta, Kentucky.
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Are you disappointed to know that Elliott Sadler will be leaving the NASCAR Xfinity Series as a full-time driver once the 2018 season comes to an end? Who do you believe will replace him at JR Motorsports for next season and beyond? Do you believe that he will still come back and compete in a few races here and there?