TALLADEGA, AL (APRIL 27, 2025) – The high banks of Talladega Superspeedway delivered the drama and intensity fans have come to expect, as the Haas Factory Team showcased speed, across both the NASCAR Xfinity and Cup Series. Sheldon Creed, Sam Mayer, and Cole Custer each made bold moves and battled at the front, bringing home solid finishes and proving the team’s strength on one of the sport’s biggest stages.
Xfinity Series
#00 – Sheldon Creed
Sheldon Creed delivered a strong performance in Saturday’s race at Talladega, leading 9 laps and recording a solid top-10 finish. After starting 11th, Creed quickly turned up the wick, smoothly navigating the draft and advancing toward the front. The double zero worked well with the bottom lane, riding the draft of the leaders early. Keeping the Ollie’s Ford glued to the inside, he surged to 3rd as the first stage concluded.
Creed took another aggressive approach in Stage Two. This time, he found the top line to be the preferred option. Drafting with Justin Allgaier and eventual winner Austin Hill, he worked his way back to 5th. In the stage’s closing laps, the draft widened from two lanes to three, forcing Creed into an unfavorable spot and resulting in a 13th-place stage finish.
During Stage Three, Creed flirted with his first career victory. He took the lead on lap 79 and held it until lap 87. Once again, the draft formation widened, and Creed got shuffled out. Though he fell to 16th, he quickly rallied, driving back into the top five. As the white flag flew, Creed was 4th with a chance to win. The final lap, however, proved chaotic. With one car crashing on the backstretch, Creed and the rest of the field raced to the checkers, with the No. 00 finishing 9th.#
41 – Sam Mayer
Sam Mayer turned in a determined effort Saturday, charging from the rear of the field to record a respectable top-15 finish. During the opening stage, Mayer worked the draft, latching onto cars that helped him gain 8 spots by the conclusion of Stage One.
The Audibel Ford continued to display aerodynamic strength and solid horsepower as Mayer navigated the pack in Stage Two. Working his way from mid-pack, Mayer carefully chose drafting partners and made smart decisions that enabled him to gain another 11 positions.
When the final stage began, Mayer restarted among the top 10, completely overcoming his 34th-place starting position. During the final stage, the draft intensified, and running positions frequently changed. At one point, the No. 41 was stuck in a slow lane, dropping him several spots. Mayer, however, found solid drafting help from teammate Sheldon Creed with 23 laps to go, helping him thrust back toward the front. Multiple cautions in the closing laps set up a hectic finish, where Mayer came home 14th.
“We had our ups and downs and we did a good job staying in the game until the end. Super proud of these guys for bringing a car that could’ve been there at the end if everything went our way,” said Mayer. “We just got to be a little better and we’ll come back at the Summer Daytona race swinging.”
Cup Series
#41 – Cole Custer
Cole Custer turned in a solid day at Talladega on Sunday, running with the leaders and at one point leading the pack. Custer rolled off from the 12th starting position, and it didn’t take long for the Haas Andy’s Ford to advance toward the front. By lap 14, Custer was 4th, and by lap 41, he was the leader. While he relinquished the lead, Custer remained inside the top 10 for most of Stage One before being shuffled back to 23rd when the stage finished.
With a fast car capable of moving forward in the draft, Custer spent Stage Two moving through the pack. There were position swings from mid-pack to the top 10. Saving fuel was also a factor, and Custer ended the stage in 19th.
As Stage Three commenced, the draft changed. What had been a three- and four-wide pack earlier became double-wide lanes of traffic, making it more difficult to move forward. Still, Custer worked the outside lane and was up to 4th with 26 laps to go. The jockeying for position didn’t slow until the checkers waved, and Custer came home 13th.
Up Next
Texas Motor Speedway (Fort Worth, TX)
Xfinity – Saturday May 3, 2025 @ 2:00pm on The CW
Cup — Sunday May 4, 2025 @ 3:30pm on FS1
About Haas Factory Team
The Haas Factory Team is a NASCAR Cup and Xfinity program owned by Gene Haas, founder of Haas Automation. Beginning in 2025, the team will feature Cole Custer driving the No. 41 Ford Mustang Dark Horse in the NASCAR Cup Series, while Sheldon Creed and Sam Mayer take on the Xfinity Series in the No. 00 and No. 41 Ford Mustangs, respectively. Based in Kannapolis, North Carolina, the Haas Factory Team reflects a commitment to performance and engineering excellence, carrying forward Gene Haas’s commitment to motorsports.
