Johnny Sauter

by Fr. Dale Grubba – March 23, 2009
The summer of 2008 was a tough one for Johnny Sauter, one he would prefer to forget. He started out the year thinking he had a full time ride only to lose it a couple of races into the season. Once the season has started it is very difficult to find another ride. There is an ever increasingly small amount of teams looking for drivers, and many expect the driver to bring financial help or a sponsor.

“Last year was a learning year,” says Sauter. “Every year I learn something. You say to yourself that next year can’t be as bad as the year before. Turns out it can be. Take your lumps and move on.”

When Dick Trickle didn’t have a ride he felt it was always important to be walking around in the pits. “Out of sight, out of mind,” Trickle would say as he searched for a ride. Sauter agrees. He bought a Nationwide car to start and park out of his garage at home just to be able to be at the track. The Haas team called him back to drive the #70 car in some races.

Sauter’s goal was to find a team he could call home whether it was trucks, Nationwide, or Cup. He wanted to be someplace where he could have staying power and try to build something. It’s hard to have success with a team that is just thrown together. “If you can’t win it takes the fun out of it,” Sauter admits. “When I am forty or fifty years old and in the twilight of my career it might be different.”

The truck team that Sauter is driving for this year is owned by Duke and Linda Thorson and is based out of Sandusky, Ohio. It is essentially a two-truck team that has been around since the start of the truck series. Matt Crafton drives the #88 truck and Sauter has taken over the driver’s seat in the #13, which has been in existence for five years. Sauter had driven a race for them at Homestead in 2005 that served as an introduction that eventually led to his being signed this year.

Sauter thinks his equipment is top line. “We’ve got great motors, Pro-Motors which Hornaday won the championship with.” A new crew chief, Jason Overstreet, has recently joined the team. Overstreet was with Germain last year and had a pole and some good runs to his credit. “No doubt we have the tools and the people,” Sauter states. “We just have to put it together.”

The first two races served as an early indication of Sauter’s being with a good team and gave him hope for the future. “I legitimately felt like we had one of the best trucks at Daytona. I led some laps. We got caught up in a wreck through no fault of our own. The truck had speed so I knew right away we were going to be decent. Then we had a little miscue in the pits in California.”

Sauter’s goal is to be competitive week in and week out. He thinks he can win some races and that would give him something to build on. “I really think we can win some races,” he claims. “I’d be disappointed if we didn’t. We will make some mistakes along the way. The points will fall where they may. I’d be disappointed if we didn’t finish in the top ten in points, maybe the top five.”