STATESVILLE, N.C. - No. 19 Best Buy Dodge driver Elliott Sadler and his team didn't have as much down time as some of the other team's heading into the first off weekend of the 2009 season. The team tested tires for Goodyear at Darlington Raceway on Tuesday and Wednesday before finally getting some time off. This weekend Sadler travels to Atlanta to watch his favorite team-the North Carolina Tar Heels-secure the ACC basketball tournament championship and a No. 1 seed in the upcoming NCAA tournament.

Sadler Quotes

ELLIOTT SADLER ON THE OFF WEEKEND: "This first off-weekend of the season is a blessing. I love to race, but this first month of the season is probably the toughest stretch as far as the physical and mental toll that it takes. The entire team is on the road for a month. You have to deal with the emotional highs and lows of Daytona, then head to the West Coast for two weeks and finally back to Atlanta. It takes a lot out of everyone. That does not even take into account the time spent away from family. I'm a newlywed and being away from my new wife for weeks at a time can be tough, but I'm lucky that she can take time to come out on the road with me every once in a while. A lot of guys on the team don't have that luxury. This is a great week to try to relax and reset."

ANY SPECIAL PLANS FOR THE OFF WEEK? "There really is no such thing as an off week. I was tire testing at Darlington on Tuesday and Wednesday. That was good because we desperately needed a good test session to work on some things. We have been making strides each week, but a good test session should go a long way for the No. 19 team. The rest of the off-weekend I'm headed to the ACC Tournament in Atlanta to root for the Tar Heels. We don't get a chance to do stuff like that very often because of our schedule, so I'm definitely going to take advantage. I'm hoping the men in Carolina Blue can cut down the nets and get that top seed for the NCAA tournament. I think they have what it takes to win the NCAA Championship this year."

BRISTOL- "Man, I love Bristol. That's where I got my first victory in Sprint Cup racing. Every time I walk into the place I think of that day in 2001. I think Bristol might be NASCAR's best track. I know it is for me. It's old school racing. If I were building race tracks I would build a few more Bristols and put them all over so the whole world can see the kind of a show NASCAR puts on at a track like that."

Additional Notes of Interest

• Sadler is putting his video game skills to the test on Friday night in the BMS hospitality village when he goes toe-to-toe with Clint Bowyer, Kasey Kahne and AJ Allmendinger in a Wii boxing tournament to be crowned champion in Thunder Valley

• Sadler led 24 laps in the season-opening Daytona 500 before being passed for the lead on lap 147. The 24 laps led surpasses his 2008 season total of 21 laps led.

• His fifth-place finish in the season opening points race is his fourth consecutive finish of sixth or better in the Daytona 500.

• Kevin Buskirk is in his first season at the helm of the No. 19 Dodge. Buskirk previously teamed with Sadler at Robert Yates Racing as the engineer and later as crew chief of the No. 38. In 2004 the No. 38 team with a combination that included Buskirk and Sadler scored two wins and made the Chase for the Championship. Buskirk spent the last two seasons as the director of research and development at Dale Earnhardt Inc.

• Sadler married his hometown sweetheart Amanda Prince on Jan. 17 in Emporia, Va. (Sadler did receive his passport the Friday before the newlyweds left for their honeymoon).
   

Chassis Info

Primary: No. 278
Details: New chassis
Backup: No. 259
Details: Raced frequently in 2008
Served as backup at LVMS

Race Information
Race: Food City 500
Distance: 500 laps
Race No.: 5 of 36
Venue: Bristol Motor Speedway
Location: Bristol, Tenn.

Television Schedule

Friday
P1: Noon p.m. SPEED
Qualifying 3:30 p.m. SPEED
Saturday
Practice 1:00 p.m. SPEED
Sunday
Race: 1:30 p.m.
TV: FOX
Radio: PRN