Sam Mayer Striving for Martinsville Clock, ‘Kicking Tail’ to Start 2025 Xfinity Season

RIDGEWAY, Va. — Sam Mayer and the new-look No. 41 Haas Factory Team have impressed to start the 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series season, with four top fives in the first six races. Currently second in points, 29 behind leader Justin Allgaier, Mayer enters Saturday’s (March 29) Xfinity race at Martinsville Speedway looking to win his first grandfather clock and the Dash4Cash $100,000 bonus.

Frontstretch had the opportunity to interview Mayer at Martinsville on Friday (March 28) before Xfinity practice and qualifying to talk last Saturday’s (March 22) overtime restart with Kyle Larson at Homestead-Miami Speedway, his fresh start at Haas, the prestige of Martinsville, his throwback paint scheme for Darlington Raceway and more.

Stephen Stumpf, Frontstretch: Before we get into this weekend, I think everyone wants to know: were you able to talk to Kyle [Larson] after the events of the Xfinity race [at Homestead]?

Sam Mayer: I mean, we kind of both know what each other was thinking. We never got the chance to sit down and talk or anything like that, but it’s just part of racing, unfortunately.

… Our Ford Mustang was certainly as fast Xfinity mobile, but it wasn’t quite fast enough to get the job done in the long run. The No. 17 (Larson) was definitely quite a bit faster, but we had really good short run speed, so on that restart I felt like we were going to be in a really good spot, and it just didn’t pan out the way we needed.

Stumpf: After having something like that happen on the restart, what’s the process of regrouping and moving on to the next weekend?

Mayer: Even after the restart happened, you got to move on pretty quick and go to work to try to continue to win the race because I think one more lap, we probably would have won it.

We were quite a bit better than the No. 17 and the No. 7 (Allgaier) on the short run, especially the first two to three laps. So, one more lap, I think we would have had it. But yeah, that’s all she wrote there. It’s solid, but it’s not good enough.

Moving on to Martinsville, I’m excited for it. I feel like these cars have been really fast here in the past, and I have a couple of good finishes here. I have a runner up here. I don’t have a Martinsville clock yet, but I certainly think we could get that one this weekend.

Stumpf: One last thing for Homestead: have you ever been in a part of a race like that? Five cars on the lead lap, 16-second [gap]. And is there some silver lining of having an eight-second lead over the rest of the full-time drivers?

Mayer: The thing is you got to think about it, like say the No. 17’s not there, and it’s just full time Xfinity guys. We had the field absolutely waxed, so there’s a lot of really good feelings behind that, knowing that we brought a car that was really, really good.

We can run it back next year, because it’ll probably mean a lot more next year doing that. So we’re going to try to keep bringing that speed this year and hopefully follow ahead into next year as well.

Stumpf: Six races in, are you guys about where you expected to be in speed in the offseason? Are you behind, ahead? What’s your take on your results so far?

Mayer: We’ve been kicking tail, that’s for sure. I feel like we’ve done a really good job of putting ourselves in position to be there at the end of the races and have a shot at a top five or a top 10, but no one really cares about top 10s in this series.

So we’re doing pretty good on the top five list. Obviously, we want to be a little better because we want to get some W’s, but we’re pretty much exactly where we expected to be, if not a little bit better.

You always kind of expect growing pains a little bit, as it’s a new team, new crew chief-driver combination, so being as fast as we are and having off-the-truck speed like we have, it feels really good. (Crew chief) Jason [Trinchere] does a really good job on top of the box, putting us in a good spot, and I’m keeping us there at the end of these races too, so, at some point, we’re going to top five them to death and hopefully get a win there somewhere. But we’re in a really good spot now, and we can only get better.

Stumpf: Speaking of top fiving to death, it’s kind of the reverse of your season last year where it seemed like you either won or didn’t finish. What do you attribute to all these consistent finishes, when you have finished? Is there something driving wise you’ve changed or is it just a matter of luck?

Mayer: Yeah, our finishes last year looked like a heart rate monitor. Up, down, up, down the whole time, whereas this year, it’s a little more consistent, so it feels good to have that consistency. That’s what the boys up in the [NASCAR Cup Series] level want.

So, if we can continue to string those together and put ourselves in a good spot and hopefully have a championship run this year, we can get to where we want to be, but I’m really looking forward to the rest of the year with these guys.

We’re kicking tail right now. I think we can only get better. So having that consistency this early feels really good.

Stumpf: You’re also working with Sheldon [Creed] as a teammate. I believe this is the first time you guys are teammates since GMS Racing in Trucks in 2020. What’s it been like working with him again?

Mayer: Sheldon’s awesome. He’s a lot of fun behind the scenes in the gym. We were out grilling for the boys at the shop this last week, and getting to hang out and have that kind of personality in the shop is a lot of fun, and obviously, on the racetrack too he’s really, really fast. He’s obviously a truck champion, so he brings a lot to the table experience wise, and we’re just going to work. We want to hang banners in the shop, and we’re getting ever so close to doing that. I think that we’re going to be a dynamic duo for the next — at least this year. Maybe next year as well.

Did you hear? Sam Mayer will honor @KurtBusch's 2017 Daytona 500 Win at Darlington's Throwback weekend. 🏁@Audibel_Hear X @sam_mayer_ @NASCAR_Xfinity X @TooToughToTame pic.twitter.com/pfg1ppwYER

— Haas Factory Team (@HaasFactoryTeam) March 28, 2025

Stumpf: Your Darlington throwback was released: Kurt Busch’s [2017] Daytona 500 car complete with the grass. What’s the process of choosing the schemes, and where does this one rank among the ones you’ve done in the past?

Mayer: This is for sure my favorite throwback that I’ve done. It’s hard to say it’s a throwback because it was 2017, but for me, that was like when I first really got into the sport of NASCAR. It was the first scheme where I was like, ‘Holy crap, that’s my favorite scheme out there for sure,’ and being able to run it for myself is really, really cool, and I’ve been wanting to do this throwback for a while.

Having the No. 41 on the side of the car anyway was the best excuse to be able to do it, and then having the grass on the hood, that was a little touch that I wanted to do because it gives personality to it, and it’s a big deal for obviously Haas and Gene Haas and all those guys at the shop. They’ve been around for a while, and getting to run the throwback is really, really cool.

Stumpf: Back to Martinsville — Obviously you just missed out on the Dash4Cash last week. What would you do with the [money] with a win this week?

Mayer: I think to win the Dash4Cash is awesome. It’s going to be challenging this week again, just like it was last week. All four of us (Mayer, Creed, Justin Allgaier and Austin Hill) were in the top five for most of the race, so I think you’re going to have to bring home a grandfather clock to get the Dash4Cash as well, because I think all four of us are going to be right there in the top five. It would be a nice little double up for sure compared to what we had last week. We were also so close, but I think we can run it back this week and win.

Stumpf: The grandfather clocks here [are] one of the most unique trophies on the Xfinity schedule. Where does [Martinsville] rank among the tracks you’d want to win at the most?

Mayer: This place is special to me. It was the first time where I went to a track in a late model. I came for NASCAR races, so it has a special place in my heart for that because it was my first step in kind of making it to the top three series. Coming here is always a lot of fun. Obviously, the grandfather clock is just super cool in and of itself. I’ve been so close to getting one like two or three times now, so I really want to get it because I know exactly where I’m going to put it in my house once I win it. This is definitely a top-five track for me.

Stumpf: Is there anything else you want to add to anyone that may be watching or listening?

Mayer: Just a huge shout out to all the fans that support me. These last couple of years have been a lot of fun, but this year has probably been the most fun I’ve had in a race car in a long time, so I’d love to cap it off with a win, and I appreciate the support from everyone as we do that.