Michael Waltrip Racing announced that Elliott Sadler will drive the team’s #55 Toyota in five Sprint Cup races in 2012 beginning at Bristol Motor Speedway on March 18. Sadler will also drive the #55 in the August Bristol event, both Martinsville races and the July 15 race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Waltrip explained how Sadler came to drive the No. 55. ‘Elliott has the experience and attitude we were looking for,’ said the two-time Daytona 500 champion. ‘We ‘ll pair him with Crew Chief Rodney Childers who builds really fast cars. We believe Elliott will do a great job.’ Waltrip drove the #55 in the Budweiser Shootout and will run in four more races in 2012. Mark Martin will drive the #55 in 24 races plus the All Star Race in Charlotte. MWR will name a driver for two road course events at a later date.(MWR)(3-3-2012)
UPDATE: no driver has yet been named for the race at New Hampshire in September, that driver will be named later.(3-4-2012)
UPDATE 2: Elliott Sadler’s plans to substitute for Mark Martin behind the wheel of the #55 Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series may have been a bit premature. Sadler, who won the Nationwide Series race Saturday for Richard Childress Racing, was hoping to pilot the Aaron’s Toyota for five races that Martin has elected to skip, starting with the race at Bristol Motor Speedway on March 18. But multiple sources told FOXSports.com the deal blew up Saturday night, shortly after it was announced via a press release. While talks had been in the works for a couple of months, the manufacturer conflict for Sadler, who drives Chevys full time for RCR in the Nationwide Series, appears to have squashed the arrangement. With most rosters set for 2012, don ‘t be surprised to see former Toyota driver Brian Vickers run the five races in place of Martin.(Fox Sports)(3-4-2012)
