FONTANA, Calif. -- Elliott Sadler is looking to resuscitate his NASCAR career, and it may begin with Kevin Harvick Inc. next season.

The longtime Sprint Cup Series driver has struggled at Richard Petty Motorsports since the team tried to break the driver's contract last season. It was finally announced this July that Sadler would not return in 2011, and there were no viable options in the Cup Series on the table.

“

When I felt like people might have turned their backs on me and done other stuff and left me in a tough situation, Kevin [Harvick] stepped up to the plate.

”

-- ELLIOTT SADLER

Meanwhile, Sadler had run races in the Camping World Truck Series for team owner Kevin Harvick along with a Nationwide Series race at Bristol where Sadler sat on the pole. He also won the inaugural truck race at Pocono in July.

With his schedule open, both drivers said they are working towards offering a Sadler something more permanent for next season in the Nationwide Series along with more Truck races.

"You know, when I felt like people might have turned their backs on me and done other stuff and left me in a tough situation, Kevin stepped up to the plate," Sadler said at Auto Club Speedway. "He's like, 'Man, I believe in you, you can get this done. I want you to run my equipment.' It has been a great situation. Kevin has done a lot to revive my career and give me confidence. He's a great motivator right now."

The desire to go racing full-time with Sadler next year is there. Now all KHI has to do is find the financial backing.

Sadler said Harvick does nothing halfway and won't run a limited schedule without the proper funding.

"Right now, he's obviously a part of our Truck Series program and has run the Nationwide races," Harvick said. "We'd love to have him play more of a role with the organization."

Harvick said the organization is still working through plans for next season.

"Hopefully we can kind of lay out our truck and Nationwide plans as we get through the next three or four weeks," he added.

What is definite right now is that Sadler will be in at least four Truck races for KHI in 2011. Meanwhile, leaving the Cup Series after more than a decade doesn't seem to bother Sadler.

"People have been asking me about that a lot lately and honestly I look at it like this," Sadler said. "Jeff Burton said when he left Roush Racing and went to [Richard Childress Racing] he felt like he was restarting his career not going somewhere else to end it. I'm going here to start my career over to redo it and that's kind of where I am at, too."

Many NASCAR drivers in the past have taken a step back into the lower series to redevelop their talents and regain confidence. Some return to the premier series while others take comfort in being more competitive in Nationwide.

"If I leave and go to the Truck or Nationwide series, I'm not going there to run one year and end my career. I am going to restart it and do something else," Sadler said. "Yes, it is a direction change, but my ego isn't too big that it says I have to be a Cup driver or I can't race. I don't want to be a Cup driver that just rides around. That is not in my nature; I'm way too competitive of a person."

Sadler has made six starts for KHI in the No. 36 truck, posting one win, two top-fives and three top-10s.

"I don't care what division I race in as long as I am competitive and I'm having fun," Sadler said. "I just want to win races and have a chance at a championship so we've got our fingers crossed."