Johnny Sauter 'Headed in The Right Direction,' Runner-Up in World Crown 300

Johnny Sauter fell one spot short of a victory in the World Crown 300 on Saturday night at Cordele Motor Speedway, but had plenty of reason to leave the Georgia bullring with his head held high.

The former NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion led 45 laps in Saturday's 300-lap UARA National Super Late Model event, the first World Crown 300 since 2014. Sauter took the lead during a 119-lap green flag run that made up the middle stage of the event, relying on fresher tires to pass Matt Craig.

When Dustin Smith spun on the backstretch on lap 226, that brought out the yellow flag for what proved to be the final time of the evening, allowing the field to put on their last set of tires and prepare for a 74-lap dash to the finish.

During that run, the handling went away on Sauter's No. 5 out of the Wauters Motorsports stable, but the veteran driver battled to a second-place finish while Michael Hinde picked up his first major Super Late Model victory.

"We just got too free at the end," Sauter told Racing America. "The first run, we were a little bit too free. We got it right there on that second run. At the end there, just forward drive was okay, but I just couldn't get in the corner. There was no right-rear lateral [grip], nothing to lean on really. I was having to shallow up my entry to drive it in straight.

"Just gave up a little bit too much. Any more, you're on that razor's edge if you're good one way and bad the other way. We just went over it. All in all, a great night for us. When you have the lead, you hate to give it up, but that's how it goes, you know."

Sauter admitted that perhaps he was too hesitant to call for an adjustment going into the final run, knowing how well his car had been running to that point.

"I thought we were still in great shape. I thought, yeah, we'll come down, everyone will reset, put four tires on. I came on the radio and said no adjustments. We tried to get the stagger the same as we had. I think we opened up about a quarter of an inch more than what we had been running that run prior.

"I'm not saying that's all of it. I think the track just continued to get freer and freer and freer. Even from yesterday, the first run in practice, all the way through practice and to race conditions. It just deteriorated the whole time grip-wise, but it was a fun race. I like that slipping and sliding, that's the way you want it to be. Maybe I should have had them tighten up there at the end, but it's hard to make those calls when everything's going your way."

Still, it was a strong showing for the Sauter partnership with Richie Wauters, which has made big gains over the past two seasons. In two prior UARA National starts this season, Sauter qualified on the pole for the Motor Mountain Masters 150 at Jennerstown Speedway and won the Bigley Memorial Tune-Up at Freedom Factory.

"We continue to learn. Just from driving Richie's stuff a year and a half ago, we were pretty far off. Obviously, we don't do it a lot. We do it a couple of times a year, so we keep working towards making the stuff better. We've had great speed the last three or four times we've raced.

"I think we're headed in the right direction. We've got some ideas on what we could have done differently this weekend already. I think we implement some of that stuff, we'll be in good shape."

When Sauter won the BIgley Memorial Tune-Up, he dedicated the victory to Bobby Gill in his battle against cancer. Gill had been Sauter's crew chief at the Bigley Memorial 128 last year, as well as an inspiration to Sauter early in his career.

While Gill passed away last week, his spirit was alive and well at the World Crown 300 Saturday, an event he won twice in his career. Along with decals that every car in the field carried, Sauter's No. 5 featured a photo of Gill on the hood.

There was also a moment of silence during pre-race festivities, as well as a salute on the fifth lap of the race to Gill from fans in attendance.

"Bobby was a good dude," said Sauter. "I got to know him pretty good. All my old-school racers, the Mike Eddys and Bob Sennekers of the world, obviously my dad and [Dick] Trickle and all those guys, I caught the tail end of that era. Bobby Gill slid into that role for me as a kid. Last year, he was with us down at the Bigley and he crew chiefed my car while Richie was working on the other one. I thought we were in great shape to get him a win.

"All them guys, that generation of racers, those were the real racers. Those guys could build their own cars, drive the truck and trailer to the race track, work on it, race all day, win the race and then drive home. That's missed."

Some of those "real racers," like Gill, already adorn the list of World Crown 300 winners. Dick Trickle won the inaugural running of the event in 1983, and Mike Eddy won the race in 1985.

Sauter hopes next year he can return to Cordele and join that list of racers, alongside fellow Wisconsin natives such as Trickle, Rich Bickle and Chris Wimmer.

"Who doesn't want to race for 35 grand? Pretty simple weekend, pretty straightforward, 12 tires. I thought it was great. This has always been a good race track. I guess the first time I came here was about 10 years ago with my own stuff when I was still living in North Carolina.

"I just like it. It reminds me of some of the bullrings we race on back home in Wisconsin. A little bit of Berlin, but it's got its own vibe going on, but it's a pretty racey racetrack. When you're a racer, that's what you look for."

-Photo credit: Will Bellamy, Racing America