DEFENDING CHAMP CHASING MORE THAN A REPEAT SADLER SAYS SECOND-YEAR FORMAT FRUSTRATING.

Byline: Tim Haddock Staff Writer

Elliott Sadler enters Sunday's NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race at California Speedway as the defending champion. He is 13th in points, 34 out of 10th place, the final spot eligible for the Chase for the Championship. Sadler was a Chase finalist in 2004, the inaugural year of the Chase format. He finished ninth in points, with two wins and eight top-five finishes in 2004. The day after the Nextel Cup Series race at Michigan International Speedway, Sadler sat down with a group of reporters on Aug. 22 at California Speedway to talk about his chances of making the Chase again and returning to the track as the defending race champion. The Chase for the Championship starts in two weeks with the Nextel Cup Series race at New Hampshire International Speedway.

Question: This is the same situation you were in last year, almost?

Sadler: Pretty much. Except last year we had a little bit more point pad before coming to California. It was great to win this race here, a really fun win. It was a lot of fun, because no one expected us to win this race. And we came here and ran up front all day long. Took the lead with 20 some laps to go. Whatever and held on and solidified our spot in the Chase. It was really a fun win. It was not like we came in here and rode around just to try and make the Chase. It kinda put an exclamation point on the end of it and got to go to Richmond with kinda pretty much no pressure on us. It's a lot different circumstance to come in and knowing you have to run good than it is coming in saying, well, if we have a little bit of bad luck, we're OK because we have a little bit of a pad. But we can't take chances. I don't think we can take as many chances this year because we can't afford to make any more mistakes.

Q: Is that a frustrating way to go racing?

Sadler: It is very frustrating. It's frustrating to when we took the green flag at Michigan to feel like you already have your back up against the wall, that man we gotta race hard, but we can't do anything stupid to get ourselves in trouble and that's what happened to us. When the car came around, the thoughts that went through my head, you just wouldn't believe how many things can go through your head in what seems like just a split second. When we come off turn two and got loose I was just, man I cannot believe this is happening. I could not even fathom the thought of something happening to us right then. It's been very frustrating and very tough.

Q: It seems like a lot of you guys are in the same boat with a lot of bad luck?

Sadler: Labonte had a tough part of the season. Matt Kenseth and Jeff Gordon are going through it. Any time Jeff Gordon is 12th in points (after the Michigan race) this far in the season, I don't think everything's going too smooth for him, too. I sat down with a lot of different drivers the last month and got their opinion on what's going on and how do you fix it and trying to get advice, because I'm still pretty young at this deal. Everybody says, you go through it like a hitter in a hitting slump. You go out there and you keep swinging, you keep hitting and maybe one day you get it back. It's kinda what we gotta do. We gotta go out there and race hard every week.

Q: Could it be the younger talents, like Jamie McMurray and Carl Edwards, are catching up with some of the veterans?

Sadler: I heard Jamie hasn't been running that well, but he's just finishing races. He's staying out of trouble. I guess that's what you gotta do at this point of the season is just let the other guys take care of themselves and run up front. I think all the Roush cars are running good. I looked at one time yesterday (at Michigan), they were five of the top six. Those guys have definitely got their stuff together. Whether it was Mark (Martin) or Carl (Edwards) or Greg (Biffle) or whoever, you got certain teams that seem like they've been running good on each track and they're staying out of trouble and they're getting points for it.

Q: Has the Chase changed the way to approach the first 26 races?

Sadler: I think it has really made it more frustrating racing. Twice as frustrating now as it ever was. It used to be if you were eighth or ninth or 10th in points at this point in the season, you were just trying maybe to go out there and win because you couldn't win the championship, you probably couldn't be in the top five, so you're not going to worry about it. Now, man if we can just hold on to 10th, we get to redo all the points. If we go to New Hampshire, we got a chance to win the championship. The sense of urgency is amazing right now, the last two years over what it used to be. I think racing is twice as hard now than it ever was. I think a lot of the guys that have been involved in the Chase think the same thing. It just seems like it's only 26 races and if you mess up, you only got two or three races there to fix it instead of 15. I think it's a lot more frustrating and a lot harder now than it's ever been in the past with this new point system.

Q: Will the Chase format lead to shorter careers for drivers?

Sadler: A lot shorter. I don't think you're going to see anybody race till they're 47, 48 anymore. The young guys coming in. I can't see that happening.

Q: You don't see yourself going that long?

Sadler: No. Maybe 40 at the most. A lot of guys my age are saying about the same thing - race until you're about 40 and then maybe own a team. I think there is so much pressure on us right now. It's a lot different than it used to be. We spend so much more time on the road than we do at home. I haven't been home in about two months. It's a lot more time consuming and the schedule's started getting longer and NASCAR's looking at different areas right now for different tracks. Before it's over they'll probably have 40 or 42 races on the schedule before it's all said and done. I can't see people my age right now or the guys that are 20, 22 years old racing till they're 47, 48. I can't see that.

Q: You want to call (NASCAR Chairman and CEO) Brian (France) and tell him you said 42 races?

Sadler: I can see it going that far. By the time they're looking at Seattle, man, they really want something in that market. Of course everybody knows they're trying to find something in New York also. And you just never know when there's something new. We went to Mexico this year. We might have to go to Canada. There's a lot of good areas that are still left on the map that NASCAR really hasn't invaded yet. So you never know what the possibilities can be.

Q: Coming into the race at California Speedway, what is a reasonable point margin to overcome?

Sadler: I think if you're within 50 points of 10th before you take the green flag at California, you got a legitimate shot. ... I think if we're within 50 points coming here to California we still got a good shot at it. If we're more than that, I think that really we're going to have to have something really drastically bad happen to not just one team, but probably two or three teams and something really good happen to us. We're coming with our guns loaded. We're doing the same exact thing we did last year. We're bringing our Indy car straight from Indy here, that sat on the pole and ran so good with there. We did the same thing last year and ran with it. The car is pretty much built for Indy and California. It's probably the only two places we can run it. We're going to try and do that again.

We know it's going to be fast. I'm not worried about how fast it's going to run. We just got to make the right adjustments and the right calls during the race and hopefully lightning won't strike the car or anything while we're going around and we'll be OK.

Q: In these last few races before the Chase begins, are you guys going to be more aggressive than you usually are?

Sadler: Yes. I think people are going to be all over the top of each other. Aggressive, pushing, beating and banging, not giving an inch. (Michigan) was a perfect example. Jeff Gordon and I were racing each other in the pack and he raced me like it was the last lap of the season. Every time I got around him and he let Greg Biffle go, 'cause he's not racing Greg Biffle, and we were all in there together. We're going to have to race each other hard. I can see no giving and taking especially at Bristol and Richmond. Short tracks I can see no giving and taking. If you have a chance to trap a guy on the outside and where he's going to lose 10, 11 spots, you're going to have to do that if you're racing that guy in the points.

Q: Sounds like you're aware of where everybody else is on the track?

Sadler: I'm aware. I'm watching and looking. As a driver you can see who's doing what. But as far as the actual crews feeding me information, OK, you're racing so-and-so and he's 10th or you're racing so-and-so and he's 20th, whatever. We don't give that information out. I think the team's aware of it, and they might base whatever they're doing off of it. But as far as actually using that radio time, we don't ever talk about it.

Q: Is the worst-case scenario before the race at Richmond, you and teammate Dale Jarrett fighting for the 10th spot in the standings?

Sadler: We could be fighting for 10th and let the best man win. We're not going to do anything stupid to each other. I mean we're too good of friends and too good of competitors. I would love for us to be running for 10th and one of us make it. If course I would love to have me to make it. But if something happens to us, I want them to have a good car too where they can be in the middle of it.

Q: For you, is it top 10 or forget about it?

Sadler: We made the Chase last year and with all the extra press all the Chase guys get, all the stuff we got to do in New York, all the neat things Nextel gives you, Chase is a fun thing to be a part of. They really make you feel at home and a big part of the sport if you make the Chase. If we don't make the Chase, then we got to start over fresh and try to get 11th. Who cares about New Hampshire right now. I could care less about that race. I think if you talk to any teams or any driver that's involved in the same wasp nest that we're in now as far as points, that's all they're concerned about. There is so much emphasis from sponsors and car owners and everything else to make the Chase, it's very important to do what you can to make it.

CAPTION(S):

21 photos, box

Photo:

(1) no caption (Elliott Sadler)

Getty Images

(2) GREG BIFFLE

(3) Car No.: 16, Car: Ford

(4) KURT BUSCH 

(5) Car No.: 97, Car: Ford

(6) CARL EDWARDS

(7) Car No.: 99, Car: Ford

(8) JEFF GORDON

(9) Car No.: 24, Car: Chevrolet

(10) JIMMIE JOHNSON 

(11) Car No.: 48, Car: Chevrolet

(12) MARK MARTIN

(13) Car No.: 6, Car: Ford

(14) JEREMY MAYFIELD 

(15) Car No.: 19, Car: Dodge

(16) RYAN NEWMAN 

(17) Car No.: 12, Car: Dodge

(18) TONY STEWART 

(19) Car No.: 2, Car: Dodge

(20) RUSTY WALLACE 

(21) Car No.: 2, Car: Dodge

Box:

BEHIND THE WHEEL