Haas Factory Team News
Mayer Charges to Season Best Third-Place Finish at Texas Motor Speedway. Creed Continues Hot Streak with Ninth Straight O’Reilly Series Top 10.
By Haas Factory Team
FORT WORTH, TX (May 2, 2026) – Haas Factory Team placed both cars inside the top 10 on Saturday afternoon at Texas Motor Speedway in the O’Reilly Series. Sam Mayer charged from 17th to a season-best third-place finish, while Sheldon Creed crossed the line sixth to extend his career-best top-10 streak to nine straight races.
Sam Mayer entered the weekend looking to replicate his 2024 victory and rolled off 17th after Friday’s qualifying session. The driver of the No. 41 Andy’s Frozen Custard Chevrolet wasted little time charging forward, breaking into the top 10 early in stage one. Following the third caution of the afternoon, Mayer tucked in behind Creed and powered past Brent Crews to claim sixth on lap 28. The two teammates battled to the stage finish, with Mayer crossing the line seventh to earn four valuable stage points.
Starting ninth in Stage Two, Mayer immediately went to work on the bottom lane, gaining three positions on the opening lap. He executed a strong outside move around Brandon Jones on lap 60 to take over fifth, showcasing the speed in his Chevrolet. After a caution on lap 67, Mayer capitalized on the high groove to stay in the thick of a top-five fight with Crews and Kyle Larson. Holding off pressure from Jones in the closing laps of the stage, Mayer secured a fifth-place finish and collected six additional stage points.After a pit cycle placed him 10th for the final stage restart, Mayer surged back into the top five within the opening laps. Though he slipped back during the long green-flag run, a solid stop on lap 143 allowed him to reset and climb forward. A late caution on lap 178 set up a final sprint to the finish, and Mayer took full advantage with fresh tires, slicing past Austin Hill and then Crews to move into third. He closed to within a second of the leaders in the closing laps, ultimately finishing third to secure his highest result of the 2026 season.“I’m super proud of everybody staying in the game all day. We never really had track position to show for it, but to come ninth on that restart to third was really cool,” Mayer said. “Our team needed a solid day like this after a rough go to start the season. Make sure to get your $1 cones on Monday courtesy of Andy’s Frozen Custard.”
Riding a wave of momentum with eight straight top-10 finishes — including back-to-back Dash 4 Cash bonuses — Sheldon Creed qualified 11th and set his sights on extending both streaks. After two early cautions, the driver of the No. 00 Road Ranger Chevrolet quickly worked his way into contention, battling Brent Crews inside the top five. Running in front of Mayer, Creed maintained steady pace through the closing laps of Stage One and crossed the line sixth to collect five stage points.
In Stage Two, Creed continued to showcase consistency during the long green-flag run. After dropping a few spots in traffic, he kept the No. 00 Road Ranger within striking distance of the top 10. A caution on lap 67 reset the field and allowed the team to make adjustments, and Creed capitalized by holding his ground through the closing laps to finish ninth, earning two additional stage points.Following a stage break pit stop, Creed restarted 11th for the final segment and methodically worked his way back into the top 10 during the green-flag cycle on lap 144. He continued to battle inside the top 10 until a caution on lap 178 provided another opportunity to gain ground on pit road, advancing to ninth. A strong restart propelled him to sixth before settling back into the mix, and a late move around Brandon Jones on lap 191 put him inside the top five. Creed ultimately crossed the line sixth, extending his top-10 streak to a career-best nine consecutive races.
The NASCAR O’Reilly Series heads to Watkins Glen International next Saturday, May 9th, with race coverage on the CW set for 4 p.m. ET.
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.
- 41 Sam Mayer
Sam Mayer entered the weekend looking to replicate his 2024 victory and rolled off 17th after Friday’s qualifying session. The driver of the No. 41 Andy’s Frozen Custard Chevrolet wasted little time charging forward, breaking into the top 10 early in stage one. Following the third caution of the afternoon, Mayer tucked in behind Creed and powered past Brent Crews to claim sixth on lap 28. The two teammates battled to the stage finish, with Mayer crossing the line seventh to earn four valuable stage points.
Starting ninth in Stage Two, Mayer immediately went to work on the bottom lane, gaining three positions on the opening lap. He executed a strong outside move around Brandon Jones on lap 60 to take over fifth, showcasing the speed in his Chevrolet. After a caution on lap 67, Mayer capitalized on the high groove to stay in the thick of a top-five fight with Crews and Kyle Larson. Holding off pressure from Jones in the closing laps of the stage, Mayer secured a fifth-place finish and collected six additional stage points.After a pit cycle placed him 10th for the final stage restart, Mayer surged back into the top five within the opening laps. Though he slipped back during the long green-flag run, a solid stop on lap 143 allowed him to reset and climb forward. A late caution on lap 178 set up a final sprint to the finish, and Mayer took full advantage with fresh tires, slicing past Austin Hill and then Crews to move into third. He closed to within a second of the leaders in the closing laps, ultimately finishing third to secure his highest result of the 2026 season.“I’m super proud of everybody staying in the game all day. We never really had track position to show for it, but to come ninth on that restart to third was really cool,” Mayer said. “Our team needed a solid day like this after a rough go to start the season. Make sure to get your $1 cones on Monday courtesy of Andy’s Frozen Custard.”
- 00 Sheldon Creed
Riding a wave of momentum with eight straight top-10 finishes — including back-to-back Dash 4 Cash bonuses — Sheldon Creed qualified 11th and set his sights on extending both streaks. After two early cautions, the driver of the No. 00 Road Ranger Chevrolet quickly worked his way into contention, battling Brent Crews inside the top five. Running in front of Mayer, Creed maintained steady pace through the closing laps of Stage One and crossed the line sixth to collect five stage points.
In Stage Two, Creed continued to showcase consistency during the long green-flag run. After dropping a few spots in traffic, he kept the No. 00 Road Ranger within striking distance of the top 10. A caution on lap 67 reset the field and allowed the team to make adjustments, and Creed capitalized by holding his ground through the closing laps to finish ninth, earning two additional stage points.Following a stage break pit stop, Creed restarted 11th for the final segment and methodically worked his way back into the top 10 during the green-flag cycle on lap 144. He continued to battle inside the top 10 until a caution on lap 178 provided another opportunity to gain ground on pit road, advancing to ninth. A strong restart propelled him to sixth before settling back into the mix, and a late move around Brandon Jones on lap 191 put him inside the top five. Creed ultimately crossed the line sixth, extending his top-10 streak to a career-best nine consecutive races.
- Up Next:
The NASCAR O’Reilly Series heads to Watkins Glen International next Saturday, May 9th, with race coverage on the CW set for 4 p.m. ET.
- 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.