Gear Problem Hampers Mayer In Daytona Xfinity Qualifying

Sam Mayer will have to come from the back of the pack Friday night at Daytona Int'l Speedway. (Rusty Jarrett/Nigel Kinrade Photography)

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – A surprising internal issue on the No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet during NASCAR Xfinity Series qualifying Friday at Daytona Int’l Speedway left Sam Mayer struggling for the right words.

Mayer suffered what he called a “self-inflicted” shifting problem that prevented the Franklin, Wis., native from posting a lap at-speed around the 2.5-mile World Center of Racing.

That will start Mayer at the rear of the field for the Wawa 250 powered by Coca-Cola, stunting the 21-year-old’s track position early.

“I just obviously made a mistake,” Mayer lamented in the garage area. “I’m honestly sick and tired of myself having to do all these bad-news interviews. Just frustrated with myself; we’ve got a lot of positivity around [this team] right now and I’m just making mistakes here and there. These guys at the [Hendrick Motorsports] engine shop deserve a little better than that.

“I have to get myself together. These guys do great jobs and build really, really fast motors, so I’m not too worried about [being deep in the starting grid],” he added. “We’re going to come from the back and show that we belong here. Our Carolina Carports Chevrolet is going to be flying, you can count on that.”

Pressed further on the specifics of the problem, Mayer confirmed that it was a gear issue within the engine, though he didn’t believe he’d outright missed a shift while getting up to speed.

“I didn’t necessarily miss a gear; it got caught in the gate between third and fourth [gear],” Mayer clarified. “It was just enough to upset the motor, obviously, so I have to take care of the baby a little better going forward. I know my guys will take good care of the issue, take good care of me, and we’ll prove that we can come to the front.”

Mayer will hope that, come race time, he can finally put a streak of horrid luck at Daytona behind him.

In six Xfinity Series starts at Daytona, he’s never finished inside the top 10 and crashed out three times.

Broadcast coverage of Friday night’s Daytona Xfinity Series race is slated for 7:30 p.m. ET, live on USA, the Motor Racing Network, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.

Tough one for this team. I appreciate all the work put into this car by @JRMotorsports @TeamHendrick. We’re going to give it all we got come race time. 💪

— Sam Mayer (@sam_mayer_) August 23, 2024