| | | | | | THE HOT PASS | Rocketman Newman takes pole, Sadler close behind him | |
| | By Lee Spencer / FOXSports.com Elliott Sadler qualified so well at Phoenix International Raceway on Thursday that he surprised even himself.
For the 18th time in Sadler's career, he will start on the front row for a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. But his second-place start for Saturday's Subway Fresh Fit 500 is Sadler's best qualifying effort at PIR since he rolled off ninth in 2004.
Sadler surpassed everybody on Thursday except for Rocketman Ryan Newman, who won his 43rd career pole — fourth at PIR. Carl Edwards, Mark Martin and Sadler's Gillett Evernham Motorsports teammate Kasey Kahne rounded out the top five qualifiers in the session.
"I know it's just qualifying and not the race, but we needed this," said Sadler, who posted a disappointing 26th last week at Texas — one position behind Kahne. "We had such a bad week at Texas. Kasey and I have brand new cars here and they're both pretty fast right now.
"I'm not the best qualifier in the world here at Phoenix. For our car to be this fast and comfortable to drive, we should be good Saturday night. It depends a lot on how you get your weekend started. Track position is very important. Pit selection is very important. My guys put a lot of effort into the qualifying deal and it showed up for us today."
Considering that Sadler injured his back before Martinsville two weeks ago, he appeared quite chipper following his best qualifying effort of the season. The 32-year-old Emporia, Va. native recently signed a two-year extension to his contract and is optimistic with the new ownership team at GEM and their plans to move the organization's home base from Statesville, N.C. closer to the hub of NASCAR racing, Charlotte N.C.
"I remember when I raced for the Wood Brothers when they were still up in Stuart (Virginia) and then moved to Robert Yates Racing and all the wealth of talent there was in Mooresville (N.C.)," Sadler said. "People really make the difference and there's a strong pool of talent to choose from in Charlotte."
One of the most dramatic differences Sadler has noticed at GEM was the promotion of Mark McArdle from chief engine builder to vice president and managing director of competition.
"Mark McArdle has been absolutely a home run for everyone at Gillett Evernham Motorsports," Sadler said. "The guys love working with him. He's just got such good structure. There's no more panic buttons. There's no more tricks of the week. There's no more guys having to work so late to get the last-minute changes in. Everybody has to do things at a certain time in a certain structure. We know what cars we're running at Darlington already. We know what cars we're at Richmond already.
"That way we can be proactive and be prepared and be ahead. I think that's why we're better in the points this year. I think that's why we're a little bit more competitive this year. We're not where we need to be by any means, but he's good a really good outlook on things for the next couple months. We know where we're going to test. We know what we've got to test. He's just taken some of the processes they had at the engine shop and brought them to the race team."
Sadler finished sixth at Daytona, but a top five on Saturday could propel the No. 19 team in the right direction.
In 12 career Phoenix Cup starts, Sadler's best finish is 10th.
| | Posted April 11, 2008 , 4:59 pm EST
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