For the first time since 2019, Elliott Sadler is set to return to national-level NASCAR competition. The 51-year-old former star, who had stepped away from full-time racing, will take part in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event at Richmond Raceway on August 14.
He is slated to pilot the No. 25 Ram 1500 for Kaulig Racing’s newly established Ram Truck program, adding his name to a growing roster of notable drivers who have campaigned the No. 25 “free-agent” truck this season.
Sadler has not competed in a truck race for 15 years, with his last NCTS appearance dating back to the 2011 season. Across 20 starts in the series, he earned a single victory, winning at Pocono in 2010.
“It’ll be fun getting back into a truck — I just hope I still remember how to drive it,” Sadler said in a team statement. “Richmond has always been special to me, and I’m thankful to Ram and Kaulig Racing for giving me this opportunity to compete again. I really cherished my career in NASCAR and how special the fans have been to me.”
A winner at all three national levels of the sport, Sadler made nearly 400 NASCAR Xfinity Series starts and collected 13 career wins. Although he never claimed an Xfinity championship, he finished as the series runner-up in four different seasons.
In the Cup Series, he competed in 438 races between 1997 and 2017, securing three victories at the top level: Bristol in 2001, and Texas and Fontana in 2004.
Reuniting with Kaulig
Sadler’s most recent NASCAR start came with Kaulig, when he ran two Xfinity Series races with the team in 2019 and recorded a top-ten finish in his final outing — nearly seven years ago.
“We are so excited to have Elliott drive for us at Kaulig Racing,” said Chris Rice, CEO of Kaulig. “Elliott and I grew up racing together at South Boston Speedway, so to have him race for us in Richmond, in front of our home state fans is special. We won tons of races together and thanks to Ram, Matt Kaulig and everyone at Kaulig Racing we have the opportunity to go out and try to win one more.”
Previous drivers of the No. 25 Kaulig truck include Tony Stewart, Jamie McMurray, Clint Bowyer, AJ Allmendinger, Ty Dillon, Colin Braun, Corey LaJoie, Travis Pastrana, Parker Kligerman and Carson Ferguson. At North Wilkesboro, 2008 Daytona 500 winner Ryan Newman is driving the entry.
