Elliott Sadler drove his No. 1 OneMain Financial Chevrolet to a third-place finish in the season-ending Ford EcoBoost 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
He was two finishing positions shy from earning his first NASCAR championship, falling victim to a late-race restart and eventual winner Daniel Suarez in the end. Sadler’s third-place finish behind Suarez left him a mere two points short of the title in the winner-take-all season finale.
Despite the near-miss for the title, Sadler and his OneMain Financial team fought through adversity for much of the race before getting the break they needed with nine laps remaining. A caution flag for a spin brought the front-runners to pit road one final time, and Sadler and interim crew chief Mike Bumgarner rolled the dice with a blazing-fast two-tire stop that gained him 10 positions, putting him second for the final restart.
Cole Whitt stayed out on that final caution, assuming the lead for what would be the most important restart of the season. As the leader, Whitt chose the preferred high line, leaving Sadler on the bottom lane. Whitt, who stayed out on old tires, did not get a good restart, opening the door for Sadler to get away cleanly. However, Suarez, starting directly behind Sadler, filled the hole left when Whitt faltered and swept past the Virginia native on the outside for the lead. Two laps later, Suarez crossed the finish line first to secure the title.
Despite the finish, it was a harrowing day for Sadler and the OneMain Financial team. Sadler had an outstanding qualifying session and secured the outside pole earlier in the day. After a frenzied start, Sadler slid back to the fourth position and remained there until the second caution of the day came out at lap 25. Sadler brought the OneMain Financial Camaro down pit road for tires, fuel, and a track-bar adjustment. By lap 50, however, Sadler had fallen back to the ninth position and told the No. 1 team that the car was too tight in the center and too free in the initial throttle. After a long green-flag run, Sadler came to pit road on lap 83 for adjustments.
The yellow flag flew over the speedway at lap 90 for fluid on the racing surface. When the green flag flew again at lap 95, Sadler had his OneMain Financial Camaro sitting in the 10th position. The handling was never quite where Sadler wanted it and that forced him back in the pack. By lap 110, Sadler was scored in the 14th position. A caution at lap 126 gave the OneMain Financial team the opportunity to improve the handling of the car by pitting. A great pit stop got the No. 1 car off pit road fast and into the eighth position. As the sun started to set over the south Florida speedway, the handling of the car started to improve, and the Emporia, Va. native improved his position to fourth in just one lap.
The red flag fell over the speedway on lap 138 for a multi-vehicle crash on the backstretch. Sadler restarted from the sixth position on lap 143 and was scored third by lap 144. With 50 laps remaining, the four title contenders were battling together on the track and Sadler was in the thick of it, racing hard in the third position. After making brief contact with the outside wall, Sadler fell back a few positions until the caution came out at lap 160. Sadler restarted the race from the 15th position after a few lug nuts came off the left rear wheel while on pit road, extending the stop and costing him positions. Sadler advanced his No. 1 machine to 11th when the final caution of the night waved on lap 192.
The aggressive call for two tires on the final stop put Sadler in contention for the race win and the championship. His third-place finish was the 14th top five for Sadler in 33 races, and he finished the season with a career-best 29 top 10s. By way of his season totals, Sadler authored one of the most successful seasons in his career.
Trailing Suarez at the finish were Ty Dillon, Sadler, Ryan Blaney and Austin Dillon, while Sadler’s JR Motorsports teammate and fellow Championship 4 competitor Justin Allgaier came home sixth.
Elliott Sadler, driver No. 1 OneMain Financial Chevrolet
“I feel like this is the best team that I have ever worked with. We all wanted to win and we all felt like we had a chance at winning. I have had more fun this year than I have in a long time. It was neat being in this position this weekend, and having my family with me was great. I really wanted to hand Dale (Earnhardt Jr.) and Kelley (Earnhardt-Miller) that trophy tonight. All in all, we did the best that we could and I am proud of my guys.”
