Driving the #21 car for Wood Brothers Racing, Josh Berry recently endeared himself to his team — with his first win in the NASCAR Cup Series — which had hired him the previous season following the dissolution of Stewart-Haas Racing. His Win at Las Vegas was particularly unique as it marked the team’s first victory on a non-superspeedway track since Ryan Blaney’s 2017 win at Pocono Raceway.
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However, the #21 car has not only brought joy to Josh Berry and Ryan Blaney but also to Elliott Sadler, who secured a win at the 2012 Food City 500 in Bristol following his mother’s recovery from cancer.
Sadler’s tenure with Wood Brothers Racing spanned from 1999 to 2002 in the Cup Series, during which time they celebrated a victory at Bristol and achieved their highest points finish in 2012, placing 20th.
A longtime fan favorite in the Xfinity Series, Sadler has maintained a deep-seated affection for the Wood Brothers. That’s why witnessing Josh Berry’s victory last Sunday was an emotional moment for him as well.
Overwhelmed with joy, Sadler expressed his sentiments on X/Twitter, exclaiming, “Holy shit !!!! I’m in tears .. congrats to the [Wood Brothers] and Josh Berry .. great guys all the way around !! So happy !!”
Consequently, when a fan page recently shared a photograph of Sadler from his 2012 victory at Bristol in the Xfinity Series, the erstwhile Wood Brothers Racing driver re-posted it on his X account and captioned it, “My mom had just gotten over breast cancer … and we celebrated together in victory lane .. a race I will never forget.”
My mom had just gotten over breast cancer … and we celebrated together in victory lane .. a race I will never forget https://t.co/I40mcF8m9S
— Elliott Sadler (@Elliott_Sadler) March 18, 2025
A fellow NASCAR enthusiast, who also endured a cancer journey, extended congratulations to the former stock car racer for that win and his mother’s recovery, remarking, “Congrats to your mother and family! I’m a cancer survivor also, and a victory over cancer is better than any victory any can imagine. Take a victory lap Mom! You’ve earned it!!!”
Another fan shared a personal connection, saying, “I remember. We’d been through that journey with my mom, so I felt all the feels for you.”
One supporter simply offered well wishes, stating, “God bless your mom and the family,” while another praised the emotional significance of the event, commenting, “Great moment in your great career!”
What happened in the Bristol race in 2012?
Sadler dominated the final 36 laps to secure his second Nationwide victory following the Phoenix race and later clinched two additional wins that season, ending the 2012 Xfinity season in a second-place finish overall.
During the closing stages of the Bristol race, under caution with just a few laps left, crew chief Luke Lambert decided to have Elliott Sadler stay out, sealing the win in that NASCAR Nationwide Series race.
The win kept his lead in the series, positioning him 25 points ahead of then-defending champion Ricky Stenhouse Jr., 29 points in front of Trevor Bayne, 30 points over rookie Austin Dillon, and 41 points clear of rookie Cole Whitt.
Sprint Cup luminaries Kasey Kahne, Brad Keselowski, pole-sitter Joey Logano, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. rounded out the top five in the 300-lap ordeal.
Logano was best among all the others, pacing the field twice for a total of 119 laps. After a break from Nationwide Series victories since 1998 — achieving wins at Bristol and Rockingham that year — Sadler returned to form in 2012, winning two of the season’s first four races and securing top-five finishes in the other two.
