By: Zach Catanzareti, Staff Writer
Elliott Sadler was in contention for a third XFINITY Series victory at Talladega Superspeedway for Saturday’s Sparks Energy 300. What damaged his chances, however, occurred with 38 laps to go.
It was then where Sadler entered pit road as the race leader under green with the following pack on his heels. The No. 1 JR Motorsports driver had led for 30 laps and won Stage 2 but was brought to his knees when John Hunter Nemechek slid through a patch of water following Sadler onto pit road. The No. 42 spun sideways and Sadler just avoided contact with Nemechek.
The close call, however, wasn’t without punishment. Sadler was busted for speeding after gassing it up to avoid damage from Nemechek’s spin. And despite slowing down afterward, Sadler’s understanding of the rule was thrown into confusion after having t serve a drive-through penalty under green.
“The NASCAR rule is if you have to avoid a wreck and go down pit road under green, as long as you slow back down, it’s not a penalty,” Sadler said. “I just asked about it and they didn’t look at the video that way.”
The penalty put Sadler off the lead lap while fuel strategy brought the race to an overtime finish, nearly ending his bid at his first win of 2018.
“I was plenty slow and the spotter was yelling that the No. 42 was wrecking under me, so I had to gas it up so he wouldn’t hit me,” he said. “Then, I slowed back down. Per the rule, that should be OK. It’s a shame it happened the way it did.”
But the day didn’t end. Getting back on the lead lap under the final caution, Sadler paired up with JRM teammate Justin Allgaier to reach the top five on the final lap. Sadler finished fifth while Allgaier, who ran out of fuel under caution with four to go, ended third.
“For the day we had, to battle back at the end, it felt good,” Sadler said. “We restarted 17th and 18th and I didn’t know that Justin was on the lead lap. He gave me a great bump on the restart, got on the outside, and when he went to the middle, I went, “Oh, he’s definitely on the lead lap. That was a good move.’
“I got behind him and stayed with him.”
Joining a comeback top five, Sadler also cashed his second straight Dash 4 Cash prize, bringing home another $100,000.
“A lot happened on that last lap or two,” he said. “I’m just proud we were able to come home with that $100,000 and put us in contention for Dover next week.”