October 12, 2024 | By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service

Sam Mayer keeps Xfinity Playoff run alive with dramatic victory at Charlotte Roval

CONCORD, N.C. — As Sam Mayer celebrated his drama-filled victory in Saturday’s Drive for the Cure 250 Presented by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of NC at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course, Parker Kligerman watched a replay of the whisker-close circumstance that knocked him out of the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs.

In overtime, Mayer passed Kligerman in Turn 7 of the 2.280-mile, 17-turn circuit and pulled away to claim the victory that propelled him into the Playoffs’ Round of 8.

But Mayer’s win was devastation for Kligerman, who has never won an Xfinity Series race. Kligerman was leading, with the white flag waving, when NASCAR called a caution for Leland Honeyman’s spin into the barrier in Turn 3.

Had the caution call come a fraction of a second later, Kligerman would have been the winner under yellow. The overtime, however, gave Mayer another shot in his No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet—arguably the class of the field—and the 21-year-old from Franklin, Wis., took full advantage.

“We were all crossed up getting up in there (Turn 7),” Mayer said of the winning pass. “I was loose getting into (Turn) 6, and I knew that was my only shot, if I got a good angle into that corner.

“He blocked the bottom, which was good for me in that it gave me a better angle up off the corner and got this Chevrolet hooked up, and we were gone from there. Now I get to celebrate.”

Both Mayer and Kligerman needed to win to advance in the Playoffs, but it was Mayer who got his third win of the season, his second straight at the Roval and the seventh of his career, beating runner-up A.J. Allmendinger to the finish line by 1.474 seconds.

He joins JR Motorsports teammates Sammy Smith and Justin Allgaier in the Round of 8, along with Chandler Smith (fifth), Austin Hill (fourth), defending series champion Cole Custer (13th), Allmendinger and Jesse Love (19th), who earned the final transfer spot by two points over Saturday’s pole winner and third-place finisher Shane van Gisbergen.

Kligerman left Charlotte 12th in the standings, a distant 24 points shy of the Round of 8 after fading to sixth on the final lap.

“I’ve done this interview from that side,” said Kligerman, who has combined careers of broadcasting and racing—and who will retire from full-time competition at the end of the season. “It’s really tough from this side.

“I teared up when I thought we got it there at the white flag, then the caution comes out, and we had to re-focus… I thought I cut off Turn 7 enough, but he (Mayer) somehow got below me, and then it was on from there.

“It was full contact. Sam didn’t do anything egregious. It was hard racing, but as close as you could be to the line. Now I want to cry—I’m not going to cry, but I really love this game, and it would’ve meant the world.”

For Mayer, it was no cakewalk. On Lap 3, he served a pass-through penalty for jumping the start from the second grid position, and in the late going, Mayer had a problem getting into third gear through the first two corners on the NASCAR oval.

He persevered, as did Allgaier, who finished seventh after finishing third in Stage 1 and winning Stage 2—his 15th stage win of the season.

Exiting the Playoffs with Kligerman and Van Gisbergen were Riley Herbst and Sheldon Creed, victims of a pileup in Turn 17 on Lap 34. Herbst finished 32nd and Creed 35th.


NASCAR Xfinity Series Race Number 29
Race Results for the Drive for the Cure 250 Presented by Blue Cross and
Blue Shield of North Carolina - Saturday, October 12, 2024
Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course - Concord, NC - 2.32 - Mile Paved

Total Race Length - 72 Laps - 167.04 Miles

Provided by NASCAR Statistics - Saturday, 10/12/2024 @ 07:05 PM Eastern

Fin Str Car Driver Team Laps Stage 1 Pos Stage 2 Pos Pts Status Tms Laps Playoff Pts
1 2 1 Sam Mayer (P) QPS Employment Group Chevrolet 72  3 48 Running 3 13 5
2 3 16 AJ Allmendinger (P) Campers Inn RV Chevrolet 72 1 6 50 Running 1 18 1
3 1 97 Shane Van Gisbergen # (P) WeatherTech Chevrolet 72 2 7 47 Running 3 7
4 6 21 Austin Hill (P) Bennett Transportation Chevrolet 72 4  40 Running  
5 7 81 Chandler Smith (P) Wheelers Toyota 72 10 8 36 Running 1 1
6 22 48 Parker Kligerman (P) Big Machine Spiked Coolers Chevrolet 72   31 Running 1 12
7 9 7 Justin Allgaier (P) Jarrett Logistics Chevrolet 72 3 1 48 Running 1 6 1
8 4 19 Josh Bilicki Insurance King Toyota 72 9 10 32 Running 1 10
9 13 20 Aric Almirola (P) Samaritan's Purse Toyota 72  4 35 Running  
10 16 8 Sammy Smith (P) Pilot Flying J Chevrolet 72   27 Running  
11 15 9 Brandon Jones Menards/Delta Faucets Chevrolet 72   26 Running  
12 20 31 Parker Retzlaff Carolina Cowboys Chevrolet 72   25 Running  
13 14 00 Cole Custer (P) Andy's Frozen Custard Ford 72   24 Running  
14 19 91 Alex Labbe DGM Racing Chevrolet 72   23 Running  
15 27 27 Jeb Burton BG Products Chevrolet 72   22 Running  
16 11 5 Anthony Alfredo Dude Wipes Chevrolet 72   21 Running  
17 25 28 Ryan Sieg Sci Aps Ford 72   20 Running  
18 10 88 Connor Mosack(i) Apollo Pex Chevrolet 72 7 2 0 Running 2 5
19 8 2 Jesse Love # (P) Whelen Chevrolet 72 5  24 Running  
20 21 51 Jeremy Clements Kevin Whitaker Chevrolet Chevrolet 72   17 Running  
21 29 50 Preston Pardus Chinchor Electric Inc. Chevrolet 72   16 Running  
22 26 38 Matt DiBenedetto ReMA Ford 72   15 Running  
23 35 39 Kyle Sieg RSS Racing Ford 72   14 Running  
24 37 92 Dawson Cram(i) Trade with the Pros Chevrolet 72   0 Running  
25 38 14 Nathan Byrd ASAP Commercial Doors Chevrolet 72   12 Running  
26 31 45 Brad Perez KSDT/Loose is Fast Podcast Chevrolet 72   11 Running  
27 36 15 Dylan Lupton Lupton Excavation Ford 71   10 Running  
28 33 42 Leland Honeyman # DPR Construction Chevrolet 65  5 15 Accident  
29 28 07 Sage Karam Kellum Law Firm Chevrolet 63  9 10 Brakes  
30 17 32 Austin Green 3Dimensional.com Chevrolet 58   7 Engine  
31 30 43 Ryan Ellis Classic Collision Chevrolet 58   6 Running  
32 12 98 Riley Herbst (P) Monster Energy Ford 57 8  8 Driveshaft  
33 34 29 Blaine Perkins To The POINT Ford 56   4 Running  
34 32 35 Thomas Annunziata NFPA Toyota 52   3 Accident  
35 5 18 Sheldon Creed (P) Friends of Jaclyn Foundation Toyota 38 6  7 Accident  
36 23 11 Josh Williams Alloy Employer Services Chevrolet 32   1 Accident  
37 18 26 Ed Jones Toyota Racing Development Toyota 32   1 Accident  
38 24 44 Brennan Poole Macc Door Systems Chevrolet 32   1 Accident  

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

Failed to Qualify: None.

Caution Flags: 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.

(i) Ineligible for driver points in this series

Next Race: October 19, 2024 - Las Vegas Motor Speedway

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