Haas Factory Team News
Sheldon Creed and Sam Mayer Both Secure Top-Five Finishes at Phoenix Raceway.
HFT Teammates Combine to Lead 31 Laps; Mayer Biggest Mover in O’ Reilly RaceAVONDALE, AZ (March 8, 2026) – Sheldon Creed and Sam Mayer both took home top-five finishes after they combined to lead 31 laps at Phoenix Raceway. Mayer started from the back of the pack and took home his first top-five finish of the 2026 season, meanwhile Creed earned his second of the year. Cole Custer’s day ended in the Cup Series after just 159 laps as damage from debris cut his race short due to a busted radiator.
O’ Reilly Series
March 6, 2026: at Phoenix Raceway in Phoenix, AZ (HHP / Jim Fluharty)
March 07: NASCAR races at Phoenix Raceway in Phoenix, AR. (HHP/David Graham)
After qualifying 12th on Friday, Sam Mayer was forced to start at the rear of the field after the No. 41 Audibel Chevrolet required a steering box change between sessions. Despite the setback, Mayer quickly showed the speed he displayed in qualifying, becoming the biggest mover in Stage One. Starting 37th, he gained 17 positions over the course of the opening stage and battled his way to a 20th-place finish.A quick stop under yellow propelled Mayer to 14th for the start of Stage Two – already 23 positions ahead of where he began the race. Mayer continued his charge and soon linked up with teammate Sheldon Creed, with the pair running ninth and 10th for 12 laps. As the stage progressed, Mayer searched for the best line through turns three and four to maintain pace, ultimately finishing just outside the stage points in 11th.Mayer’s climb continued in the final stage, where he restarted seventh and quickly pushed into the top five alongside Creed. The teammates surged forward, at one point opening a three-second gap on the field. After a cycle of green-flag pit stops, Mayer settled into third before a late caution reset the field. Mayer briefly grabbed the lead with 29 laps to go and fought back on the final restart, ultimately finishing fifth for his first top-five result of the season.“There’s tons to be proud of this week, but the speed our Haas Factory Team boys brought this weekend was awesome,” Mayer said. “I wish we could’ve closed this one out, but we made the most of our day for sure coming from the back in our Audibel hotrod.”Cup Series41 Cole Custer
March 07,: NASCAR races at Phoenix Raceway in Phoenix, AR. (HHP/David Graham)
Starting from 36th, Cole Custer worked to move the No. 41 HaasTooling.com Chevrolet forward in the opening stage. He gradually found a rhythm around the one-mile oval, frequently using the dogleg to shorten the track while battling Noah Gragson and Austin Hill near the back of the field. Despite dealing with a tight car and tire falloff, Custer gained five positions and finished Stage One in 31st.A strong pit stop during the stage break moved Custer up to 25th for the start of Stage Two as the first car a lap down, putting him in position for the free pass. Running among the lead lap-down group, he stayed within a tight pack while continuing to battle handling issues. Two quick yellows shuffled the field, and Custer narrowly avoided a spinning Daniel Suarez on a restart, flat-spotting his left-front tire in the process. After pitting for fresh tires, he restarted deep in the field but quickly gained spots and continued climbing before another caution on lap 132.Following a brief green-flag run, a lap-157 caution for Noah Gragson hitting the wall ended his race shortly afterward when debris punctured the radiator on the No. 41 Chevrolet. The damage forced the team out of the race, leaving Custer with a 35th-place finish.
Up Next
Both Series stay on the West Coast as Las Vegas Motor Speedway hosts the fifth race on the NASCAR Cup Series/O’ Reilly Series schedule next weekend. Race coverage for the O’ Reilly series is set for 5:30 p.m. ET on Saturday on the CW, and Sunday at 4 p.m. ET on FS1 for the Cup Series.About Haas Factory Team:
Haas Factory Team is a NASCAR Cup and O’Reilly Auto Parts Series program owned by Gene Haas, founder of Haas Automation. New in 2026, Haas Factory will align with Chevrolet. As part of the manufacturer switch, HFT will have a technical alliance with Hendrick Motorsports, which will include using Hendrick-built engines across both series. The team will feature Cole Custer driving the No. 41 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in the NASCAR Cup Series, while Sheldon Creed and Sam Mayer take on the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series in the No. 00 and No. 41 Chevrolet Camaros, respectively. Based in Kannapolis, North Carolina, the Haas Factory Team reflects a commitment to performance and engineering excellence, carrying forward Gene Haas’s commitment to motorsports.
O’ Reilly Series
March 6, 2026: at Phoenix Raceway in Phoenix, AZ (HHP / Jim Fluharty)00 Sheldon Creed
Coming into the weekend, Sheldon Creed had qualified inside the top 10 in all nine of his previous starts, but he rolled off 16th in the No. 00 Boulder Crest Foundation Chevrolet on Saturday. Creed spent much of the opening stage battling Brent Crews, as the two swapped positions several times in the closing laps. However, Creed made a last-lap pass on the No. 19 to secure ninth place and collect two key stage points.Creed continued to run inside the top 10 throughout Stage Two, finding a steady rhythm while pacing cars in the top five for much of the 45-lap run. A move past Brandon Jones on lap 35 moved him into eighth, where he remained competitive as the stage wound down. Late battles with Taylor Gray and Jeb Burton kept the pressure on, but Creed held on to finish ninth again, giving him four total stage points on the afternoon.In the final stage, Creed and teammate Sam Mayer worked closely to charge into the top five and shrink a multi-second gap to the leaders. Creed passed Jesse Love for second on lap 147 and used an early green-flag pit stop to briefly cycle into the lead. After a late caution reset the field, Creed battled Mayer on the restart and again in the closing laps, ultimately crossing the line in fourth for his second top-five finish of the 2026 season.“That was a lot of fun to drive up to second and leapfrog to the lead before we had to pit under green there,” Creed said. “We just needed it to go green to settle the car down and get some more speed out of it, but thank you to Boulder Crest Foundation, Chevrolet and Gene Haas for a fast car this weekend.”41 Sam MayerMarch 07: NASCAR races at Phoenix Raceway in Phoenix, AR. (HHP/David Graham)After qualifying 12th on Friday, Sam Mayer was forced to start at the rear of the field after the No. 41 Audibel Chevrolet required a steering box change between sessions. Despite the setback, Mayer quickly showed the speed he displayed in qualifying, becoming the biggest mover in Stage One. Starting 37th, he gained 17 positions over the course of the opening stage and battled his way to a 20th-place finish.A quick stop under yellow propelled Mayer to 14th for the start of Stage Two – already 23 positions ahead of where he began the race. Mayer continued his charge and soon linked up with teammate Sheldon Creed, with the pair running ninth and 10th for 12 laps. As the stage progressed, Mayer searched for the best line through turns three and four to maintain pace, ultimately finishing just outside the stage points in 11th.Mayer’s climb continued in the final stage, where he restarted seventh and quickly pushed into the top five alongside Creed. The teammates surged forward, at one point opening a three-second gap on the field. After a cycle of green-flag pit stops, Mayer settled into third before a late caution reset the field. Mayer briefly grabbed the lead with 29 laps to go and fought back on the final restart, ultimately finishing fifth for his first top-five result of the season.“There’s tons to be proud of this week, but the speed our Haas Factory Team boys brought this weekend was awesome,” Mayer said. “I wish we could’ve closed this one out, but we made the most of our day for sure coming from the back in our Audibel hotrod.”Cup Series41 Cole Custer
March 07,: NASCAR races at Phoenix Raceway in Phoenix, AR. (HHP/David Graham)Starting from 36th, Cole Custer worked to move the No. 41 HaasTooling.com Chevrolet forward in the opening stage. He gradually found a rhythm around the one-mile oval, frequently using the dogleg to shorten the track while battling Noah Gragson and Austin Hill near the back of the field. Despite dealing with a tight car and tire falloff, Custer gained five positions and finished Stage One in 31st.A strong pit stop during the stage break moved Custer up to 25th for the start of Stage Two as the first car a lap down, putting him in position for the free pass. Running among the lead lap-down group, he stayed within a tight pack while continuing to battle handling issues. Two quick yellows shuffled the field, and Custer narrowly avoided a spinning Daniel Suarez on a restart, flat-spotting his left-front tire in the process. After pitting for fresh tires, he restarted deep in the field but quickly gained spots and continued climbing before another caution on lap 132.Following a brief green-flag run, a lap-157 caution for Noah Gragson hitting the wall ended his race shortly afterward when debris punctured the radiator on the No. 41 Chevrolet. The damage forced the team out of the race, leaving Custer with a 35th-place finish.
Up Next
Both Series stay on the West Coast as Las Vegas Motor Speedway hosts the fifth race on the NASCAR Cup Series/O’ Reilly Series schedule next weekend. Race coverage for the O’ Reilly series is set for 5:30 p.m. ET on Saturday on the CW, and Sunday at 4 p.m. ET on FS1 for the Cup Series.About Haas Factory Team:
Haas Factory Team is a NASCAR Cup and O’Reilly Auto Parts Series program owned by Gene Haas, founder of Haas Automation. New in 2026, Haas Factory will align with Chevrolet. As part of the manufacturer switch, HFT will have a technical alliance with Hendrick Motorsports, which will include using Hendrick-built engines across both series. The team will feature Cole Custer driving the No. 41 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in the NASCAR Cup Series, while Sheldon Creed and Sam Mayer take on the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series in the No. 00 and No. 41 Chevrolet Camaros, respectively. Based in Kannapolis, North Carolina, the Haas Factory Team reflects a commitment to performance and engineering excellence, carrying forward Gene Haas’s commitment to motorsports.