CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) _ Elliott Sadler's exodus from Robert Yates Racing was completed Wednesday when he was introduced as the new driver at Evernham Motorsports.
Sadler, who signed a long-term contract to drive the No. 19 Dodge, spent Wednesday behind the wheel of his new ride during a test session at Kentucky Speedway. The paperwork on his immediate release from Yates was completed late Tuesday, freeing him to switch teams in time for this weekend's race in Michigan.
``I'm getting used to all the guys, working together, getting our language together so when we show up at Michigan this weekend we can have a head start on things,'' Sadler said. ``I think this team is prepared for the future as good as anybody, and that's where I want it to be.''
Sadler replaces Jeremy Mayfield, who was fired last week in a tumultuous ending to his four-year relationship with car owner Ray Evernham. Although Mayfield is a two-time Chase for the championship qualifier, he was angry about personnel changes on his team and mired in a slump that saw him drop to 36th in the standings before his release.
Evernham hopes a new driver can lift the team out of NASCAR's basement.
``We have fought communication and attitude issues kind of all year,'' Evernham said. ``I believe a fresh attitude with perspective, a different view on things, it can help.
``You hate to make changes in the middle of the year, but when things aren't working sometimes it's better to move forward. We're happy to have a jump on our 2007 plans.''
It's not clear how much of an upgrade Evernham actually made in hiring Sadler, who has three career victories compared to Mayfield's five. Sadler was also in the 2004 Chase field, finishing ninth in the final standings _ one spot ahead of Mayfield.
He failed to qualify last year as the Yates organization began a downward spiral that has forced them into a total rebuilding mode. Yates will try to pick up the pieces with Busch Series driver David Gilliland, but it's not clear how much driving he can do this season.
He was approved Wednesday to compete on tracks 2-miles or smaller, but has still not received permission to race at Talladega Superspeedway in October. Gilliland has 11 career NASCAR starts _ only one of them a Cup race _ and has never raced on a track longer than 1.5 miles.
