Mayer Earns Fourth Top-10 at Pocono in Xfinity Series; Wins “Driving 4 a Difference” Challenge
Xfinity Series
Sam Mayer earned a seventh-place finish in Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Pocono Raceway, collecting his fourth career top-10 at the 2.5-mile track. In a race defined by frequent cautions and evolving strategy, Mayer and the No. 41 Audibel Ford team made steady gains throughout the afternoon, especially in the final stage.
“Today was definitely a hard fought top-10 result, but we stayed in the game and made the most of the day,” Mayer said. “I’m proud of these Haas Factory Team (HFT) guys and hopefully we keep rolling in a good direction.”
This weekend at Pocono marked the final race in the “Driving 4 a Difference presented by the Gene Haas Foundation,” a new in-season Ford tournament within the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Mayer won the inaugural Xfinity tournament with 117 points, followed by teammate Sheldon Creed (116), Ryan Sieg (101), Harrison Burton (93) & Kyle Sieg (37).
The opening stage featured two early cautions that allowed Mayer’s crew to short-pit before the segment ended, setting him up with favorable track position for Stage 2. Despite surrendering stage points, he was able to gain momentum heading into the midsection of the race.
Meanwhile, Creed ran the full opening stage and finished eighth, earning two stage points in the No. 00 Road Ranger Ford.
Stage 2 proved more challenging for Creed, who was forced into an incident with Nick Sanchez exiting turn two that forced him to make contact with the inside wall. Though both cars maintained competitive pace, the issues persisted for the No. 00, and Creed’s day came to an early end after being forced to retire on lap 88, resulting in a 36th-place finish.
The final stage saw Mayer charge from 19th into the top-10, capitalizing on late-race restarts and staying out of trouble as others faltered. He crossed the line in seventh, capping off a day of smart execution and persistence from the No. 41 team.
“Obviously not the day we were hoping for, but we’ll look ahead to next week at Atlanta and putting together a clean, solid race,” Creed said.
Cup Series
Custer Posts Season Best Qualifying Performance; Comes Home 22nd at Pocono
Cole Custer rolled off fifth for Sunday’s race at Pocono, his first Cup start inside the top-five since Martinsville in 2022. The HaasTooling.com Ford ran solidly inside the top 10 early, before the team made a bold call to pit on lap 27 to flip the stage. While it dropped Custer to 32nd at the end of the segment, the move set him up for a stronger position in Stage Two.
That strategy paid off as Custer restarted fourth to begin the second stage and remained competitive inside the top 10. A caution on lap 41 allowed the team to stay out and gain more track position, but a later four-tire stop and green-flag run shuffled him back. A two-tire call late in the stage helped him recover to 24th by the conclusion of Stage Two.
In the closing stage, Custer and the No. 41 team once again opted for fresh tires, giving them the best opportunity to move forward in the final run. After cycling through green-flag pit stops, he held steady in 22nd and showed consistency to the finish. Throughout the day Custer ran with confidence as the team employed bold strategy calls and finished 22nd.
Up Next
The NASCAR Cup Series heads to EchoPark Speedway next weekend for the 18th points race on the NASCAR Cup Series/Xfinity schedule. Race coverage for the Xfinity series is set for 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday on the CW, and Saturday at 7 p.m. ET on Prime for the Cup Series.
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.
