| Hermie Sadler | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | Herman Marion Sadler III (1969-04-24)April 24, 1969 (age 56) Emporia, Virginia, U.S. | ||||||
| Awards | 1993NASCAR Busch SeriesRookie of the Year | ||||||
| NASCARCup Series career | |||||||
| 66 races run over 12 years | |||||||
| 2018 position | 50th | ||||||
| Best finish | 44th (2004,2005) | ||||||
| First race | 1996Miller 500 (Dover) | ||||||
| Last race | 2018First Data 500 (Martinsville) | ||||||
| |||||||
| NASCARO'Reilly Auto Parts Series career | |||||||
| 266 races run over 16 years | |||||||
| 2019 position | 71st | ||||||
| Best finish | 5th (1994) | ||||||
| First race | 1992Texas Pete 300 (Orange County) | ||||||
| Last race | 2019Go Bowling 250 (Richmond) | ||||||
| First win | 1993Polaroid 300 (Orange County) | ||||||
| Last win | 1994Pantry Stores 300 (Orange County) | ||||||
| |||||||
| NASCARCraftsman Truck Series career | |||||||
| 15 races run over 6 years | |||||||
| Best finish | 45th (2010) | ||||||
| First race | 1995Fas Mart Supertruck Shootout (Richmond) | ||||||
| Last race | 2010Ford 200 (Homestead) | ||||||
| |||||||
| Statistics up to date as of June 21, 2023. | |||||||
Herman Marion Sadler III (born April 24, 1969) is an American professionalstock car racing driver and broadcaster, businessman and politician.
He competed inNASCAR as a driver from 1992 to 2019. In the late 2000s and the 2010s, he scaled back his driving and worked forSpeed/Fox as a broadcaster, including as a reporter onNASCAR RaceDay and as a pit reporter on theirTruck Series broadcasts.
After leaving NASCAR altogether after 2019, he ran for political office as aRepublican in his home state ofVirginia for the newly redrawn17th district in the State Senate in the2023 election. He lost the Republican primary election on June 20 toEmily Brewer, a member of theVirginia House of Delegates.[1]
He is the brother ofElliott Sadler, who is also a former NASCAR driver.
Sadler began racing ingo-karts alongside younger brotherElliott in their hometown of Emporia. He then began running late models in Virginia. In 1992, Sadler made his debut in theNASCARBusch Series atOrange County Speedway. He started nineteenth but finished 25th after wrecking his No. 32Oldsmobile. He ran four more races that season, with a best finish of twentieth, atDover International Speedway andHickory Motor Speedway.

Sadler began running the Busch Series full-time in 1993. Driving the No. 25Shell Oil-Virginia is for Lovers-sponsored Oldsmobile forDon Beverly, Sadler picked a win at Orange County, finished tenth in points, and was namedNASCAR Busch Grand National Series Rookie of the Year. He followed that up with another win at Orange County and a fifth-place points finish the next season in 1994. After that year ended, Sadler teamed with his father, Herman, to run the No. 1DeWalt Tools-sponsoredChevrolet. Although he did not win, Sadler had six top-ten finishes and a thirteenth place finish in the point standings. He won the pole at the 1996Milwaukee Mile race, but he continued to drop and finished fifteenth place in points. He also made his debut in theWinston Cup Series, starting 30th and finishing 37th at theMiller 400 in the No. 26 Chevrolet owned byWilliam Slate.
In 1997, his ride was purchased byDiamond Ridge Motorsports, which also owned Elliott's current ride. Sadler grabbed two more poles and had seven Top 10 finishes, finishing tenth in points. After a nearly identical season in1998, Sadler was pushed out of the ride, while Elliott signed withWood Brothers Racing in the Cup Series.
In1999, Sadler signed to drive the No. 72MGM Brakes-sponsored Chevy forRon Parker. But a season-opening failure to qualify, at theNAPA Auto Parts 300, brought an end to the streak of 173 consecutive races for Sadler. After his release from the team following theMBNA Platinum 200, Sadler spent the rest of the season withBACE Motorsports'Bayer-Alka-Seltzer-sponsored entry, and thenInnovative Motorsports. In 2000, Sadler signed to drive the No. 30Little Trees-sponsored Chevy for Innovative, but often did not qualify for races, and was released after six events. After a brief stint of Innovative using interim drivers, Sadler returned to the team for the balance of the season, posting a seventh-place finish atPikes Peak International Raceway.

In2001, Sadler and his wife Angela formed their own team,Score Motorsports, and began running a limited schedule in the Winston Cup Series. Running cars purchased fromLarry Hedrick Motorsports and withVirginia Lottery sponsoring, he ran three races, his best finish being a 27th at Dover. Sadler returned to the Busch Series in 2002, running a limited schedule in his own No. 02 as well as the No. 43 for theCurb Agajanian Performance Group. His best finish was a 21st at Richmond. Sadler also ran ten Cup races that year, eight in his own No. 02 entry, and two races forJunie Donlavey.
For 2003, Sadler announced he would run the No. 54Toys R Us-sponsored Chevy in the Busch Series forTeam Bristol Motorsports. Ten races into the season, the team shut down following theHardee's 250 due to financial difficulties. Sadler ended that Busch Season running three races on his own withZapf Creations sponsoring. He also ran ten more Cup races in the No. 02 that season, with sponsors such asDollar Tree,Go Team VA, andTotal Nonstop Action Wrestling. Former NBA playerBryant Stith became a co-owner of Score in 2004, and with help from fan donations, Sadler was able to run thirty Busch races, the best finish being a twelfth at Milwaukee. He also ran sixteen races in the Cup Series, and had a 23rd-place finish atTalladega Superspeedway, as well as fielding cars forCarl Long andAndy Belmont. As a team owner, Sadler was the last to compete in a Pontiac, which had pulled out of NASCAR after the 2003 season.

During the lead-up to2005, Sadler sold his Busch Series team and announced he was selling a large portion of his Cup team toJeff Stec, owner ofPeak Fitness, who would sponsor the new No. 66 car. Sadler continued to struggle despite the new ownership, and resigned from the ride midseason. He spent the balance of the year driving occasional races forFront Row Motorsports, and even returned to the No. 66 for one race in a sponsorship deal withJerry Kilgore.
In2006, Sadler ran seven races for MBA Racing, racing the No. 00Aaron's Rent-sponsored Ford as a partnership with theMichael Waltrip Racing team. Sadler made one start atMartinsville Speedway in2007 and2008, drivingChevrolet Silverados forAndy Hillenburg. He ran three truck races for Hillenburg in 2010.
Sadler returned to the Busch Series (nowXfinity Series) for the first time in over five years in 2010, and raced at Richmond in the No. 09 car, sponsored byTNA Impact!, finishing six laps down, in 32nd position. He made two additional starts in Busch that season in the No. 27Baker Curb Racing Ford, but failed to finish higher than thirtieth. He made six truck races for Hillenburg, and raced in the2010 TUMS Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway, driving for TRG Motorsports. It was his first start in four years in NASCAR Sprint Cup competition and the team cited his prior success at Martinsville as the best chance for TRG to remain in the Top 35; TRG entered Martinsville just fifteen points ahead of 35th and twenty points in front of the 36th place team.[2] Sadler finished 26th and the TRG maintained its top-35 status, and he ran three additional Cup races for TRG in 2011.


In 2012,Richard Childress Racing gave him a start in the No. 33 Sprint Cup car at Martinsville in theGoody's Fast Relief 500. Anderson's Maple Syrup sponsored the entry, and Sadler finished 31st at his home track.[3]
After not running any races in 2013, Sadler returned as a driver in 2014, running the late season Nationwide Series short track races at Bristol and Richmond forTriStar Motorsports. He piloted the No. 19Toyota Camry usually driven byMike Bliss, with Bliss moving to the team's No. 10 entry for these events. TheVirginia Lottery sponsored the ride for Sadler. Starting that year and through the end of his career, he would serve as a spokesperson for the lottery who would sponsor him in races in or near Virginia. His only starts in 2015 came for JGL Racing at Bristol and Richmond, with Virginia Lottery continuing to sponsor.
After a five-year absence from the Cup Series, Sadler drove the No. 7 Chevy forPremium Motorsports at the2017 First Data 500 atMartinsville Speedway;[4] after starting the race last, he finished 34th.[5]
On November 17, 2019, Sadler tweeted he had departedNASCAR on Fox.[6]
Sadler currently owns Sadler Stanley Racing with politicianBill Stanley, fielding modifieds on theSMART Modified Tour andNASCAR Whelen Modified Tour. SS Racing has teamed up with PSR Products and sponsor Pace-O-Matic, with driversBobby Labonte,Ryan Newman,Luke Baldwin,Jonathan Cash, and Jon Brown.
On November 9, 2022, Sadler announced that he would run against DelegateEmily Brewer in theRepublican primary for the newly redrawnVirginia State Senate District 17 in 2023.[7] The district includesSuffolk,Isle of Wight County,Portsmouth,Southampton County,Brunswick County,Greensville County,Franklin City, parts ofDinwiddie County, and his lifelong hometown ofEmporia, Virginia.
Sadler would lose the primary election on June 20, 2023 to Brewer. In the campaign, Sadler had outraised Brewer by about $200,000, raising $680,000 for his campaign as of June 8. Brewer was endorsed byVirginia GovernorGlenn Youngkin,Lieutenant GovernorWinsome Sears andAttorney GeneralJason Miyares.[1]
In 2002 Sadler had a feud inTotal Nonstop Action Wrestling withRon Killings, and a number of appearances and matches as part of a cross promotion between TNA and NASCAR. TNA later sponsored Sadler's racing efforts.
As of March 27, 2009, he has been hosting an online web cast show entitledHermie's Hotseat that can be seen on TNA'sYouTube channel where Sadler does candid sit-down interviews with the performers and employees of Total Nonstop Action Wrestling.
Hermie started the United Wrestling Federation, wrestling promotion in 2005. At first, the company worked with TNA Wrestling bringing house shows under the TNA/UWF moniker to areas like Detroit, Philadelphia, and other parts of the east coast. Hermie wrestled part-time in his promotion as well, teaming with Rhino, Jeff Hardy, Team 3D, and others.
In late 2006, the UWF ceased co-promoting with TNA and began independent operations in 2007, although they continue to use the six-sided ring that TNA utilized at the time. At a show in Richmond, Virginia on September 29, 2006, Hermie presented a $10,000 check to anautism foundation. On December 5, 2007, he signed with TNA as an announcer.
It was announced on April 21, 2014, that Sadler joined the board of directors for Jeff Jarrett'sGlobal Force Wrestling.[8]
Sadler graduated from theUniversity of North Carolina and is an avidNorth Carolina Tar Heels sports fan.[9] Married February 3, 1996, he and his wife Angie have three daughters -– Cora, Halie and Naomi. Sadler has publicly talked about his middle daughter, Halie, being on theautism spectrum.[10]
Sadler and his wife Angie own restaurants near their hometown of Emporia, Virginia, including FO SHO Bar and Grille, the Victory Lane Restaurant, and aQuiznos location. He and his sister own the Sadler Brothers Oil Company, which has managed truck stops and convenience stores throughout three generations of ownership.[1]
(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time.Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
| Year | Team | Manufacturer | Start | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | SCORE Motorsports | Chevy | DNQ | |
| 2003 | Pontiac | DNQ | ||
| 2005 | Peak Fitness Racing | Ford | DNQ | |
| 2006 | MBA Racing | Ford | 41 | 40 |
| NASCAR Camping World Truck Series results | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | NCWTC | Pts | Ref | |||||||||||||
| 1995 | Sadler Racing | 00 | Chevy | PHO | TUS | SGS | MMR | POR | EVG | I70 | LVL | BRI | MLW | CNS | HPT | IRP | FLM | RCH 13 | MAR 5 | NWS | SON | MMR | PHO | 53rd | 279 | [42] | ||||||||||||||||||
| 2000 | K-Automotive Motorsports | 29 | Dodge | DAY | HOM | PHO | MMR | MAR | PIR | GTY | MEM | PPR | EVG | TEX | KEN | GLN | MLW | NHA | NZH | MCH | IRP | NSV | CIC | RCH 12 | DOV 11 | TEX | CAL | 65th | 262 | [43] | ||||||||||||||
| 2007 | Fast Track Racing Enterprises | 71 | Chevy | DAY | CAL | ATL | MAR | KAN | CLT | MFD | DOV | TEX | MCH | MLW | MEM | KEN | IRP | NSH | BRI | GTW | NHA | LVS | TAL | MAR 35 | ATL | TEX | PHO | HOM | 112th | 55 | [44] | |||||||||||||
| 2008 | 48 | DAY | CAL | ATL | MAR | KAN | CLT | MFD | DOV | TEX | MCH | MLW | MEM | KEN | IRP | NSH | BRI | GTW | NHA | LVS | TAL | MAR 26 | ATL | TEX | PHO | HOM | 92nd | 85 | [45] | |||||||||||||||
| 2009 | DAY | CAL | ATL | MAR 19 | KAN | CLT | DOV | TEX | MCH | MLW | MEM | KEN | IRP | NSH | BRI 17 | CHI | IOW | GTW | NHA | LVS | MAR 33 | TAL | TEX | PHO | HOM | 57th | 282 | [46] | ||||||||||||||||
| 2010 | DAY | ATL | MAR 12 | NSH | KAN | DOV | CLT 19 | TEX | MCH 20 | IOW | GTY | IRP | POC | NSH | DAR | BRI 32 | CHI | KEN | NHA | LVS | MAR 14 | TAL | TEX | PHO | HOM 22 | 45th | 631 | [47] | ||||||||||||||||
(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time.Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
| ARCA Re/Max Series results | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | ARSC | Pts | Ref | |||||||||||||||
| 2003 | Sadler Racing | 02 | Pontiac | DAY | ATL | NSH | SLM | TOL | KEN | CLT | BLN | KAN | MCH 2 | LER | POC | POC | NSH | ISF | WIN | DSF | CHI | SLM | TAL | CLT | 66th | 430 | [48] | |||||||||||||||||
| Chevy | SBO 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006 | Fast Track Racing Enterprises | 11 | Chevy | DAY | NSH | SLM | WIN | KEN | TOL | POC | MCH | KAN | KEN 17 | BLN | POC | GTW | NSH | MCH | ISF | MIL | TOL | DSF | CHI | SLM | TAL | IOW | 121st | 145 | [49] | |||||||||||||||
| SMART Modified Tour results | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Car owner | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | SMTC | Pts | Ref | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2021 | N/A | 17 | N/A | CRW | FLO | SBO | FCS | CRW | DIL | CAR | CRW | DOM | PUL 23 | HCY | ACE | 52nd | 8 | [50] | |||||||||||||||||||