Sam Mayer grabs a shot at the NASCAR Xfinity Series playoffs with a win at the Charlotte Roval on Saturday in the Drive for the Cure 250.
CONCORD, N.C. – Sam Mayer’s championship dreams looked to be dashed – just before a mad dash of his own gave him another shot at a title.
Sam Mayer Grabs a Shot at the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs with a Win at the ROVAL
On a day that started with a lap 1 restart violation black flag – and almost ended with a second-place finish – perseverance was the key for Mayer, who passed fellow NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoff driver Parker Kligerman on the next-to-last lap during a green-white-checkered overtime finish and held on to win Saturday’s Drive For The Cure 250 presented by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of NC on the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL.
The 21-year-old from Franklin, Wisc., earned his seventh career NASCAR Xfinity Series win and second consecutive ROVAL triumph. Mayer overcame a 13-point playoff deficit to start the day after expertly moving past Kligerman during an overtime finish. NASCAR ruled a late caution period just before Kligerman, leading at the time, took the white flag during regulation.
“Luckily, [the caution light] came on early.” said the race winner, Sam Mayer, driver of the No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet. “The last restart was unbelievable. I just turned underneath [Kligerman] on the exit of turn 7. It worked out really well. We wanted to defend our race win from last year. This one is definitely sweeter with all the road-course aces in the field. This was probably the toughest Xfinity [Series] field on the ROVAL™ and we came out on top, so I’m super proud of that.
“I said this morning, ‘If you’re in my way in turn 7, you’re not going to have a good day,’ and I kind of meant that for everyone except [Kligerman]. I was able to put him in a bad spot there [after the last restart] and then kind of drive away, but we raced each other clean. I think this was one of the cleanest Xfinity races on the ROVAL™ in a long time, too.”
For Kligerman, who finished sixth after suffering a tire rub in overtime, all he could do was sit in his window and watch Mayer’s celebratory burnout from pit road.
The Drive for the Cure 250 Results
A.J. Allmendinger was second, with pole winner Shane Van Gisbergen in third, Austin Hill in fourth, and Chandler Smith in fifth.
“We were on the line of, we were in, but if we crashed we were out.” said AJ Allmendinger, driver of the No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet. “I feel bad for Parker. I thought he got it at the line there. I thought [Mayer] and [Kligerman], for what was at stake, I thought it was pretty fair. It was cleaner than I expected.”
The NASCAR Xfinity Series Point Standings
Justin Allgaier continues to lead the NASCAR Xfinity Series point standings into the Round of 8. Kligerman, Van Gisbergen, Sheldon Creed, and Riley Herbst were eliminated from championship contention. That leaves eight drivers to battle for the title over the season’s final four races. Justin Allgaier, who finished seventh, joined Mayer as a driver who began the day outside the championship field but raced their way in. Allmendinger won Stage 1 while Allgaier took Stage 2.
In his first playoff appearance, Australian, Shane Van Gisbergen took the elimination in stride with his third-place finish. He also won his first pole to start the race from the front row.
“Our car speed was really, really good.” said Van Gisbergen, driver of the No. 97 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet. “I didn’t know what the points [standings] were in the car [as the race unfolded]. I was doing the best I could. [If] you’re relying on people to take each other out, I don’t want to win that way.”
Next Up
The NASCAR Xfinity Series Round of 8 begins next Saturday night, October 19th at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The Ambetter Health 302 starts at 7:30 pm ET. Coverage is available on CW, PRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
The defending winner is Las Vegas native, Riley Herbst, driver of the No. 98 Stewart Haas Racing Ford.