Race 31 of 33: Contender Boats 300 at Homestead-Miami Speedway
Track Specs: 1.5-mile oval / 200 laps
Race Winner: Sam Mayer
Mayer’s finish: 1st
Earnhardt Jr.’s finish: 5th
Jones’ finish: 8th
Allgaier’s finish: 15th
Berry’s finish: 32nd
Sam Mayer
Sam Mayer, driver of the No. 1 Accelerate Professional Talent Solutions Chevrolet, raced his way to victory and clinched his spot in the NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship 4 in Saturday afternoon’s event at Homestead-Miami Speedway. After starting the race in 13th, Mayer was able to power through the field quickly and battle for the top spot the majority of the day before making his way to Victory Lane after taking the checkered flag in the Contender Boats 300.
Race Rundown
- The young driver set the Accelerate Professional Talent Solutions Chevrolet 13th in line to start the early-afternoon event after a solid qualifying effort on Friday evening. Mayer quickly got to work as he cruised through the field in Stage One and ended up on the heels of the leader with 12 laps to go. The driver of the No. 1 Chevrolet held on to the runner-up spot for a second-place Stage One finish, gaining a valuable nine stage points.
- Mayer did not have much to report as his JR Motorsports racecar felt really good throughout the first stage. Crew chief Mardy Lindley called the young driver down pit road for four tires, fuel and a slight air pressure adjustment. Mayer remained in second to restart Stage Two.
- During the green-flag shuffle, Mayer battled with Cole Custer for the lead and quickly slipped in behind before teammate Justin Allgaier came battling for second. 11 laps into Stage Two, Mayer settled into fourth where he held on until a lap-67 caution arose. Mayer reported to the team that he could be tightened up a little bit but Lindley chose to stay out.
- The Franklin, Wis native restarted third in line but fell back to fourth to finish the stage. Mayer pulled the No. 1 Camaro down pit road for four fresh tires, fuel and a trackbar adjustment. A solid pit stop held the team’s place in line as they rolled off pit road fourth to start the Final Stage at Homestead.
- The green flag fell and a yellow flag showed shortly after with a caution coming out on the restart. On the second restart, Mayer battled for the runner-up position but nestled back into third behind competitor Custer once again. With 89 laps to go, the young driver made a pass for second and held on strong.
- Mayer reported “I feel a little snug off of four, I need to be freed up just a little bit in the center.” Lindley called for a lap-140 pit stop under green to grab four Goodyear tires, some Sunoco fuel and an adjustment. The field cycled through their pit stops which allowed Mayer to get back to the top five with 57 laps to go.
- Just a few short laps later, Mayer took the lead. The next caution came out shortly after and Lindley called the young driver down pit road for his last set of tires, some fuel and an air pressure adjustment. Mayer was able to roll off quick to restart the event second with 30 laps to go.
- After a late-race caution came out, Mayer was able to take the lead with 23 laps to go and hold his own. The young driver battled pressure from Riley Herbst closing in on the final lap but it was not enough to take the lead away from the JRM driver.
- Mayer crossed the finish line and took the checkered for his fourth win of the season and a spot in the NXS Championship 4.
Sam Mayer, driver No. 1 Accelerate Professional Talent Solutions Chevrolet team
“Today was an absolute dream come true and I cannot thank JR Motorsports and this No. 1 team enough for all the hard work they put in to get us to this point. It feels really good to be able to secure a spot in the Final Four with a win and I am looking forward to these last two weeks of the 2023 season. We will carry this momentum to Martinsville and focus forward to Phoenix to hopefully secure the championship!”
Dale Earnhardt Jr,
Making his second and final start of the 2023 season, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and the No. 88 Bass Pro Shops Club Card team locked down a fifth-place finish in Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series event at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Overcoming a starting spot deep in the field, Earnhardt Jr. and team tuned on the car with each pit stop, eventually cracking the top five in the closing laps of the race. The effort marks Earnhardt Jr.’s fourth top-five in seven NXS race since his retirement from fulltime competition.
Race Rundown
- Earnhardt Jr. wasted little time moving to the familiarity of the top side. With a decent handling car at the outset, Earnhardt Jr. drove forward to 15th in the opening laps.
- As the run went on, Earnhardt Jr. began battling a loose condition but still moved the No. 88 Bass Pro Shops Club Card Chevrolet forward, finding 12th for the conclusion of Stage One.
- The team called the No. 88 to pit road for four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment under the stage-ending caution, setting Earnhardt Jr. up for the Stage Two restart in 15th.
- After the adjustments, Earnhardt Jr.’s initial feedback was “really tight through center on both ends,” prior to the first caution on lap 69. Commenting he was “still waiting on the front” to turn in the corner, Earnhardt Jr. finished Stage Two in 16th.
- Earnhardt Jr. hit pit road after Stage Two, taking on four tires, fuel and adjustments to help combat the tight condition from the previous run. The Bass Pro Shops Club Card Chevrolet restarted in 16th and narrowly avoided the spinning No. 16 car early in the run. After that, the two-time champion settled in, climbing into the top 10 by the race’s halfway point by posting top-five lap times.
- Running up against the fence, a line that he’s known for, Earnhardt Jr. kept ascending the leaderboard, finding the sixth spot by lap 120. He worked as high as fifth prior to green-flag pit stops. The team called Earnhardt Jr. to pit road on lap 138 for four tires, fuel and adjustments.
- Returning to the racing surface, the No. 88 cycled back to 10th after several cars stayed out on old tires. The team pitted again under caution on lap 163 and lined up for the ensuing restart in seventh.
- Back to green-flag racing Earnhardt Jr. made slight contact with the No. 8 of Josh Berry off Turn 2, but took negligible damage from the incident.
- The team pitted with the leaders for the final stop of the day with Earnhardt Jr. leveraging the stop to charge from eighth to fifth for the finish.
Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver No. 88 Bass Pro Shops Club Card Chevrolet team
“I wanted a top 10 today so I’ll take a top five for sure. The car was not doing what I wanted it to do. We worked on it, and I sent us the wrong way [with changes] on the first stage break. Once the guys figured out what we needed to do, the car ran better, and we were good enough to run fifth. I’m happy about it.
“The deal with Josh Berry is on me. I got a little loose but I corrected it up the track like there was nobody there – I thought the 8 was coming through the middle. When I got loose, I thought I had room to chase it up to the fence. Not the way I want to send Josh off, I want to send him off with a win.”
Brandon Jones
Brandon Jones raced his way inside of the top five late in the going during Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series event at Homestead-Miami Speedway in the Menards/Pelonis Fans Chevrolet, before ultimately finishing in the eighth position to earn his 10th top-10 finish of the 2023 season, including in three of the last four events and four of the last six races dating back to Kansas Speedway in September.
Race Rundown
- Jones started in the 17th position after qualifying Friday evening set the lineup for Saturday’s 200-lap event. The caution-free first stage saw Jones run in the 17th position for the majority of the stage before moving to 16th just before crossing under the green-and-white checkered flag on lap 45.
- Following the opening stage, Jones came to pit road for four tires, fuel, a chassis adjustment and to fix radio problems inside the No. 9 Menards/Pelonis Fans Chevrolet. Restarting from the rear of the field due to the slow stop, Jones drove back inside the top 20 on lap 57 and up to 19th before the first natural caution flew on lap 67.
- Remaining on track and restarting from the inside of row eight, Jones dropped one position and remained in 19th as he crossed under the green-and-white checkered flag on lap 90. Pitting during the stage break for four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment, Jones restarted from the outside of row seven and powered his way into 13th before a caution slowed the field just after the restart.
- Restarting from the bottom of row six, Jones fell to the 15th position before racing his way to 12th on lap 123 and remained through green flag stops on lap 141. Pitting for four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment, Jones cycled out to the ninth position when green flag stops had completed.
- A lap-163 yellow bunched the field back together and allowed crew chief Jason Burdett to bring the No. 9 back down pit road for four tires, fuel and another air pressure adjustment to get the No. 9 dialed in for the 35-lap run to the end. Restarting from the bottom of row five, Jones battled his way inside of the top five for the first time and remained through a lap-171 caution period.
- Restarting from the bottom of row three, Jones ultimately fell to the eighth position and remained through the checkered flag on lap 200 to earn his 10th top 10 of the 2023 season and his fourth in the last six events dating back to Kansas Speedway in September.
Brandon Jones, driver No. 9 Menards/Pelonis Fans Chevrolet team
“I can’t thank this entire team enough for battling all day long. We fought some radio issues at the beginning that set us back, but they never gave up and got us back towards the front when it mattered. We have a couple more to go and hopefully we can put together a few more good runs for this Menards/Pelonis Fans team.”
Justin Allgaier
Justin Allgaier, driver of the No. 7 hellowater Chevrolet, rallied back from an unscheduled pit stop under green on lap 119 to earn a 15th-place finish in the NASCAR Xfinity Series event at Homestead-Miami Speedway. With today’s result, Allgaier heads into the final race in the Round of 8 fifth in the playoff grid, three points below the cutline as the field prepares for Martinsville Speedway next weekend. Following next weekend’s event, the playoff field will be cut to just four to fight for the championship in Phoenix.
Race Rundown
- Allgaier took the green flag for the 200-lap event from the third position following a strong qualifying effort on Friday evening.
- The driver of the hellowater Chevrolet ran inside the top 10 throughout the caution-free opening stage, taking the green-and-white checkered flag in sixth on lap 45 to score five valuable stage points to begin the day.
- While under the stage-ending caution, crew chief Jim Pohlman called Allgaier to pit road for four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment. Returning to the track in sixth following the stop, the JR Motorsports driver went to work, as Allgaier raced into the top five on lap 54 and held strong there throughout the second stage, taking the green-and-white checkered flag in fifth on lap 90.
- The stage-two result earned Allgaier an additional six stage points on the day, bringing the No. 7 team’s in-race total to 11.
- Prior to the start of the third and final stage, Pohlman again called the driver of the hellowater Chevrolet to pit road for four tires and adjustments. A strong stop by the crew sent Allgaier back out in the runner-up position.
- Once back underway, the Illinois native set sail, as Allgaier raced into the race lead on lap 104 and held on to the top spot for the eight laps that followed before being forced to make an unscheduled pit stop under green for a loose wheel on lap 119.
- Despite the unscheduled stop, Allgaier continued to fight for position and raced back onto the lead lap on lap 133 before cycling back up to the fourth position as the green flag pit stops began for the race leaders on lap 141.
- Although back inside the top five, Allgaier again had to come to pit road under green in order to make it to the end on fuel. Pitting for four tires and fuel on lap 154, the driver of the hellowater Chevrolet returned to the track in the back half of the top 20 as the laps wound down.
- Utilizing a never-give-up attitude, Allgaier persevered in the closing laps to race into the top 15 and take the checkered flag in the 15th position.
- With today’s result, Allgaier heads into the final race in the Round of 8 fifth in the standings, just three points behind the fourth and final position in the Championship 4.
Justin Allgaier, driver No. 7 hellowater Chevrolet team
“We had a really strong hellowater Chevrolet today, I just wish the ending could’ve gone better for us. We ‘ve been in this position before and I feel extremely confident that we will do what it takes next week in Martinsville. Jim (Pohlman, crew chief) and all the guys on this team are ready to go and get the job done. Big congrats to Sam (Mayer). Now it’s are turn to get two JRM cars in the final four.”
Josh Berry
Josh Berry was in contention for a top-10 finish in the latter stages of Saturday’s Contender Boats 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway before a tangle in Turn Two on lap 171 sent his No. 8 Tire Pros Love the Drive Chevrolet into the outside wall. The damage was enough to end his day with a 32nd-place finish.
Race Rundown
- In qualifying, Berry put the Tire Pros Chevrolet in the eighth position for the start of the 200-lap event, the fifth race of the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs. When the green flag waved, Berry immediately gained three positions and eventually got up to fourth in the early going.
- At lap 15, however, Berry began to fade from the top five, victim of a worsening loose condition in his No. 8 Chevrolet. Telling crew chief Taylor Moyer that he was loose on both entry and exit, Berry began to slide down the running order.
- Over the next 15 laps, Berry dropped from fifth to 15th before finishing 17th in the 45-lap Stage One. Waiting to come to pit road for much-needed adjustments, Berry told Moyer that it felt like the right rear tire was completely worn out. Moyer responded with a flurry of adjustments designed to cure the loose condition, four tires and fuel for Stage Two. The Tire Pros pit crew pulled off a quick stop and gained two positions for their driver on the exchange.
- Starting Stage Two from 15th, Berry again was on the move when the green flag waved. Over the first nine laps of the stage, the Tennessee native passed all the way up to eighth position and seemed ready to keep moving forward.
- At lap 74, however, the handling issues returned and by the time Stage Two ended at lap 90, Berry was scored in 18th position. The same handling characteristics as in Stage One had reappeared. On pit road, Moyer took another swing with adjustments and the pit crew provided fast service, but Berry was called for speeding on pit road. The penalty put him at the tail of the longest line for the restart.
- Restarting from 29th position, Berry again started to move forward and, after a caution flag slowed the going, was up to 25th in just four laps. On the ensuing restart at lap 103, Berry began again moving toward the front, making it to the top 15 at lap 118.
- At lap 135, green-flag pit stops began, which boosted Berry and the Tire Pros Chevrolet up the order. Five laps later, Berry was fifth and he would rise to second a lap later as the stops continued. The plan was to stay out as long as possible to maintain track position, but Berry radioed to pit road that he was coming in on lap 144 with a tire issue.
- When he arrived on pit road, the right front tire was corded, and that meant putting on another set of sticker tires with 56 laps remaining. The service cost Berry a lap, and he rejoined the race in 20th position.
- A caution flag at lap 165 saw Berry on the cusp of the top 10, and it allowed him to return to the pits for his last set of sticker tires. He would line up in 10th for the restart on lap 170.
- As the field raced through Turn 2, Berry was on the outside of the No. 88 car when contact sent Berry into the outside wall, and in Turn 3, he hit the wall again. The damage was severe enough to end his race and he finished 32nd on the day.
- Despite the finish, Berry remains 11th in series points heading to Martinsville (Va.) Speedway next weekend. Berry’s first NXS victory came at the .526-mile oval in 2021.
Josh Berry, driver No. 8 Tire Pros Love the Driver Chevrolet team
“Our Tire Pros Love the Drive Chevrolet was really good early in a run and we restarted pretty well, but we were just way too loose all day long. I really didn’t see what happened to cause it (the accident in Turn 2). I just got squeezed into Turn 2 and had something else happen in Turn 3. That was it. It was just a long day. We had no long-run speed at all, but we had really good restarts so we probably could have made something out of the day by just plugging along there for the number of laps left, but we didn’t make it. I hate it for Tire Pros and want to thank them for all their support the last couple of years.”
