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Haas Factory Team News

HFT Race Preview: Circuit of the Americas.

Saturday O’Reilly Series Action:
  • Date & Time: Saturday, February 28, at 3 p.m. ET
  • Track: Circuit of the Americas, Austin, TX
  • Race Distance: 65 laps / 156 miles
  • Broadcast: CW | PRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90)
Sunday Cup Series Action:
  • Date & Time: Sunday, March 1, at 3:30 p.m. ET
  • Track: Circuit of the Americas, Austin, TX
  • Race Distance: 95 laps / 228 miles
  • Broadcast: FOX | PRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90)
On-Track Activity:Friday:
  • 5 p.m. ET – O’ Reilly Practice
    CW App | PRN & SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
  • 6:05 p.m. ET – O’ Reilly Qualifying
    CW App | PRN & SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Saturday:
  • 10 a.m. ET – Cup Practice
    Prime | PRN & SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
  • 11:10 a.m. ET – Cup Qualifying
    Prime | PRN & SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
  • 3 p.m. ET – O’ Reilly Race
    CW | PRN & SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Sunday:
  • 3:30 p.m. ET – Cup Race
    FOX | PRN & SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Race Weekend Quick Hits:
  • Circuit of the Americas (COTA) hosts the first road course race of the 2026 season this weekend as the Cup Series rolls into Austin for just the sixth time ever.
  • Sheldon Creed is coming off his first career O’ Reilly Series win last weekend at EchoPark Speedway in his 138th career start. He led 17 laps en route to victory and sits third in the O’ Reilly Series points standings after two races with 80 points, behind only Rajah Caruth (82) and Austin Hill (104).
    • The victory marked the second all-time in the O’ Reilly Series for Haas Factory Team, joining Sam Mayer’s triumph at Iowa Speedway last August.
  • Mayer also earned his fourth career O’ Reilly Series pole last weekend, along with Charlotte (2022), Portland (2024) and Indianapolis (2025), and first on a superspeedway.
  • There have been five different winners in each of the five Austin Cup Series races – The winner has started eighth or better in three of five races.
Cup Driver Lineup:No. 41 Driver: Cole Custer
Hometown: Ladera Ranch, CA
Crew Chief: Aaron Kramer
Partner: Haas / BonanzaCuster’s COTA Cup Series History:
  • Starts: 3
  • Wins: –
  • Top-10s: –
  • Poles: –
Key Numbers:
  • Custer makes his fourth Cup Series start at COTA this weekend, where he has finished 23rd in each of the past two races.
  • He holds a 15.7 average starting position in his previous three starts and qualified third in 2022.
O’ Reilly Auto Parts Driver Lineup:No. 00 Driver: Sheldon Creed
Hometown: Alpine, CA
Crew Chief: Jonathan Toney
Partner: Road RangerCreed’s COTA O’ Reilly Series History:
  • Starts: 4
  • Wins: –
  • Top-10s: 2
  • Poles: –
Key Numbers:
  • Creed is set to make his fifth O’ Reilly Series start at Austin this weekend, where has finished in the top 10 twice in his career. He finished 10th in 2022 and followed that up with a ninth-place finish in 2023.
  • He has started inside the top 15 in all four starts and boasts a 7.8 average starting position.
No. 41 Driver: Sam Mayer
Hometown: Franklin, WI
Crew Chief: Jason Trinchere
Partner: Char-BroilMayer’s COTA O’ Reilly Series History:
  • Starts: 4
  • Wins: –
  • Top-10s: 4
  • Poles: –
Key Numbers:
  • Mayer makes his fifth O’ Reilly Series start at COTA this week where he has finished inside the top 10 in all four starts. He is coming off a career best third-place result in last season’s race and also finished fifth in 2022.
  • He is the only driver to finish in the top 10 in each of the previous four Austin O’ Reilly races.
  • Mayer owns a 10.5 average starting position and has started inside the top 10 in his past two starts.
HFT EchoPark Recap: After 137 starts, Sheldon Creed finally stood in victory lane last Saturday night, earning his first career NASCAR O’ Reilly Series win with a last-lap pass. The dramatic breakthrough highlighted a strong night for the Haas Factory Team, as teammate Sam Mayer started on the pole and led 23 laps, fighting back from adversity to secure a ninth-place finish.