Sporting News’ 60 Most Beautiful People: No. 23, Elliott Sadler
In 60 years of NASCAR racing, the sport has been filled with colorful characters. This year, Sporting News decided to craft a list of the sport's 60 Most Beautiful People.
The selections were made as a result of nominations sent in by readers and NASCAR fans to the Sporting News' publications and Web sites.
The list was finalized and published in a special edition, which is now available on newsstands and at the online store at streetandsmiths.com. SceneDaily is running the list, with one person from the top 60 to be featured each day.
Today's installment features No. 23 - Elliott Sadler.
Elliott Sadler is passionate about racing. He can’t help it – it’s in his blood.
When he wasn’t watching his dad, Herman, race stock cars, Sadler and older brother Hermie would compete in go-kart circuits. Exposure to the sport built the foundation for his current NASCAR Sprint Cup Series success as driver of the No. 19 Dodge. But Sadler has another passion he developed at an early age - basketball.
Growing up in Emporia, Va., he adopted the University of North Carolina as his favorite team. One of his most memorable sports moments was when Michael Jordan hit the game-winning shot against Georgetown to claim the 1982 NCAA Tournament championship, just days before Sadler’s seventh birthday.
As he got older, Sadler immersed himself in athletics and kept busy. While attending Greensville County High School and Brunswick Academy, he participated in numerous sports, but excelled in basketball. Sadler was impressive enough to receive nearly 20 small-school scholarship offers to play hoops.
However, the 6-3 guard elected to walk on at James Madison and play for famed coach Lefty Driesell.
Sadler’s hoop dreams were short-lived, though. Prior to his freshman season, he suffered a major knee injury that would require two surgeries and sideline him indefinitely. At a crossroads, Sadler decided to stick around his first year and rejoin the team his sophomore season. But his first love of racing still pulled him to the track. He would often make the drive back home and to other area tracks for weeknight practices and weekend races.
After a talk with his dad, Sadler got the go-ahead to leave school and focus on racing. In a few short years, Sadler made his debut in the NASCAR Nationwide Series and never looked back. Basketball’s loss was NASCAR’s gain.
