The first NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Iowa Speedway since 2019 didn't disappoint. In a short-track duel that took NASCAR overtime to decide, Sam Mayer held off Riley Herbst on Saturday to claim his second victory of the 2024 Xfinity Series season while denying Herbst the same. Time to celebrate, @sam_mayer_ .
pic.twitter.com/nFYNDCs1x0 In a classic example of short-track racing, Mayer and Herbst pushed each other extremely hard over the race's final 20 laps, constantly driving side-by-side and giving each other no quarter.
Mayer eventually made the pass with seven laps to go, but a caution for John Hunter Nemechek brought out the race's final yellow flag and bunched the field up for a two-lap shootout. Mayer used a strong run on the outside to clear Herbst on the exit of turn two and it was smooth sailing for the driver of the No. 1 JR Motorsports Camaro from there.
The win marks Mayer's sixth in the last two seasons and his second of 2024. After a disastrous start to the season in which Mayer had just one top-10 over the first six races, he's turned up the wick, earning seven top-fives in the last nine events on the Xfinity Series calendar. Mayer led an impressive 47 laps en route to victory, but it was Chandler Smith who had the dominant car of the day.
With the the 0.75 mile track in Richmond, Va. being the closest thing to a sister track for Iowa, many picked Smith as the favorite to win, as he had taken home the trophy at Richmond in March.
While Smith led 131 laps, he.