Sam Mayer Surprise Winner in ROVAL Xfinity Race

CONCORD, NC – In a very competitive NASCAR XFINITY Series race, a desperate Sam Mayer finished first and stayed alive for the playoffs. The controversial finish controversial overtime finish Saturday that allowed Mayer to advance in the Xfinity Series playoffs. Parker Kligerman was leading and headed toward the white flag that would have signified the final lap of the race when Leland Honeyman ran into the tire barrier. NASCAR could have thrown the caution immediately -- that's how deep into the tire barrier Honeyman was -- but the yellow inexplicably didn't flash until the split-second Kligerman was about to cross under the white flag that would have made the race official. The race then into overtime.


It was a record-tying 14th overtime race of the Xfinity Series this season. Mayer caught Kligerman in the two-lap sprint to the finish to win the race and advance in the playoffs. The two made contact on Mayer's winning pass, which caused enough damage that Kligerman, who is in his final season of full-time NASCAR racing, faded to a sixth-place finish.


"I want to cry," said Kligerman, "but I'm not gonna. I really love this, and I really, really wanted that. It would have made the world."


AJ Allmendinger, who had been a perfect 4 for 4 on The Roval in the Xfinity Series, finished second and was followed by pole-sitter Shane van Gisbergen, who despite the third-place finish was eliminated from the playoffs. Allmendinger and Van Gisbergen both race in Sunday's Cup Series race, with Van Gisbergen on the pole.


The elimination race was heartbreak for many. Kligerman, Van Gisbergen, Sheldon Creed and Riley Herbst were all eliminated.
Justin Allgaier, who was below the cutline at the start of the race, finished seventh and advanced. With the points reset, Allgaier is now the points leader headed into the opening race of the next round next Saturday in Las Vegas.

Unofficial Results: Drive for the Cure 250 Presented by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina - Saturday, October 12, 2024, Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course
Fin, Str, Driver, Car, Laps, St1, St2, Tms Led, Laps Led, Playoff Pts, Pts, Status
1) 2, Sam Mayer (P), No. 1 QPS Employment Group Chevrolet, 72, , 3, 3, 13, 5, 48, Running
2) 3, AJ Allmendinger (P), No. 16 Campers Inn RV Chevrolet, 72, 1, 6, 1, 18, 1, 50, Running
3) 1, Shane Van Gisbergen # (P), No. 97 WeatherTech Chevrolet, 72, 2, 7, 3, 7, , 47, Running
4) 6, Austin Hill (P), No. 21 Bennett Transportation Chevrolet, 72, 4, , , , , 40, Running
5) 7, Chandler Smith (P), No. 81 Wheelers Toyota, 72, 10, 8, 1, 1, , 36, Running
6) 22, Parker Kligerman (P), No. 48 Big Machine Spiked Coolers Chevrolet, 72, , , 1, 12, , 31, Running
7) 9, Justin Allgaier (P), No. 7 Jarrett Logistics Chevrolet, 72, 3, 1, 1, 6, 1, 48, Running
8) 4, Josh Bilicki, No. 19 Insurance King Toyota, 72, 9, 10, 1, 10, , 32, Running
9) 13, Aric Almirola (P), No. 20 Samaritan's Purse Toyota, 72, , 4, , , , 35, Running
10) 16, Sammy Smith (P), No. 8 Pilot Flying J Chevrolet, 72, , , , , , 27, Running
11) 15, Brandon Jones, No. 9 Menards/Delta Faucets Chevrolet, 72, , , , , , 26, Running
12) 20, Parker Retzlaff, No. 31 Carolina Cowboys Chevrolet, 72, , , , , , 25, Running
13) 14, Cole Custer (P), No. 00 Andy's Frozen Custard Ford, 72, , , , , , 24, Running
14) 19, Alex Labbe, No. 91 DGM Racing Chevrolet, 72, , , , , , 23, Running
15) 27, Jeb Burton, No. 27 BG Products Chevrolet, 72, , , , , , 22, Running
16) 11, Anthony Alfredo, No. 5 Dude Wipes Chevrolet, 72, , , , , , 21, Running
17) 25, Ryan Sieg, No. 28 Sci Aps Ford, 72, , , , , , 20, Running
18) 10, Connor Mosack(i), No. 88 Apollo Pex Chevrolet, 72, 7, 2, 2, 5, , 0, Running
19) 8, Jesse Love # (P), No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet, 72, 5, , , , , 24, Running
20) 21, Jeremy Clements, No. 51 Kevin Whitaker Chevrolet Chevrolet, 72, , , , , , 17, Running
21) 29, Preston Pardus, No. 50 Chinchor Electric Inc. Chevrolet, 72, , , , , , 16, Running
22) 26, Matt DiBenedetto, No. 38 ReMA Ford, 72, , , , , , 15, Running
23) 35, Kyle Sieg, No. 39 RSS Racing Ford, 72, , , , , , 14, Running
24) 37, Dawson Cram(i), No. 92 Trade with the Pros Chevrolet, 72, , , , , , 0, Running
25) 38, Nathan Byrd, No. 14 ASAP Commercial Doors Chevrolet, 72, , , , , , 12, Running
26) 31, Brad Perez, No. 45 KSDT/Loose is Fast Podcast Chevrolet, 72, , , , , , 11, Running
27) 36, Dylan Lupton, No. 15 Lupton Excavation Ford, 71, , , , , , 10, Running
28) 33, Leland Honeyman #, No. 42 DPR Construction Chevrolet, 65, , 5, , , , 15, Accident
29) 28, Sage Karam, No. 07 Kellum Law Firm Chevrolet, 63, , 9, , , , 10, Brakes
30) 17, Austin Green, No. 32 3Dimensional.com Chevrolet, 58, , , , , , 7, Engine
31) 30, Ryan Ellis, No. 43 Classic Collision Chevrolet, 58, , , , , , 6, Running
32) 12, Riley Herbst (P), No. 98 Monster Energy Ford, 57, 8, , , , , 8, Driveshaft
33) 34, Blaine Perkins, No. 29 To The POINT Ford, 56, , , , , , 4, Running
34) 32, Thomas Annunziata, No. 35 NFPA Toyota, 52, , , , , , 3, Accident
35) 5, Sheldon Creed (P), No. 18 Friends of Jaclyn Foundation Toyota, 38, 6, , , , , 7, Accident
36) 23, Josh Williams, No. 11 Alloy Employer Services Chevrolet, 32, , , , , , 1, Accident
37) 18, Ed Jones, No. 26 Toyota Racing Development Toyota, 32, , , , , , 1, Accident
38) 24, Brennan Poole, No. 44 Macc Door Systems Chevrolet, 32, , , , , , 1, Accident
(i) Ineligible for driver points in this series, (#) Rookie, (P) Playoffs

Race Length: 72 Laps, 167.04 Miles
Time of Race: 2 Hrs, 28 Mins, 35 Secs. Average Speed: 66.29 MPH Margin of Victory: 1.474 Seconds
Stage 1 Top 10: 16, 97, 7, 21, 2, 18, 88, 98, 19, 81
Stage 2 Top 10: 7, 88, 1, 20, 42, 16, 97, 81, 07, 19

Comments: Sam Mayer has won the Drive for the Cure 250 Presented by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of NC at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course, his seventh career victory in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.

Prior to the start, the following vehicle(s) dropped to the rear of the field under penalty for the reason(s) indicated: Nos. 26, 35 (unapproved adjustments).

Cautions: 7 for 20 laps;
Laps: 22-24 (Stage 1 Conclusion [39]);
28-29 (Debris Turn 2 [None]);
31-32 (No. 38 Spin Turn 6 [None]);
35-37 (Nos. 98, 31, 5, 16, 18, 28, 11 51, 44 Incident Frontstretch [None]);
41-43 (Stage 2 Conclusion/No. 18 Stalled on Backstretch [None]);
54-56 (No. 35 Incident Turn 1 [39]);
67-70 (No. 42 Incident  [15]).

Lead Changes: 12 among 8 drivers;
S. Van Gisbergen # (P) 1-3;
A. Allmendinger (P) 4-21;
S. Van Gisbergen # (P) 22;
J. Bilicki 23-32;
S. Mayer (P) 33-34;
C. Smith (P) 35;
J. Allgaier (P) 36-41;
C. Mosack(i) 42-45;
S. Mayer (P) 46-54;
C. Mosack(i) 55;
S. Van Gisbergen # (P) 56-58;
P. Kligerman (P) 59-70;
S. Mayer (P) 71-72.

Ron Fleshman and John Davison

Ron Fleshman  and John Davison are Editors at ris-news.com

Read More on Cup / XFINITY / Truck news
Volume 2024, Issue 10, Posted 8:14 PM, 10.12.2024