BRISTOL, Tenn. — A key decision late in Friday night's playoff race at Bristol Motor Speedway paid off for Aric Almirola and Sam Mayer. They showed they know their history with bold pit strategies. This paid off with a win and a podium finish.
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"There was no chance I was pitting," Almirola said during his post-victory press conference.
The caution flew for Taylor Gray spinning with 25 laps remaining in the race. This forced a split decision. Leader Connor Zilisch headed down pit road with several other drivers, including Brandon Jones in third place.
Almirola, who ran second, said over the radio that he would pit in case Zilisch's team scanned his radio. He then darted back onto the track to inherit the lead. Carson Kvapil and Sam Mayer followed to round out the top three.
"Just tired of getting beat by those guys, I figured I'd try my chances with the lead," Almirola said after the race. "They've been so fast and they fire off so fast on new tires and I just didn't think I could beat them straight up on new tires. It took me about 20 laps to get going so I thought my best chance was to stay out on old tires.
"We watched the last two or three races here and saw how the 9 car with Noah Gragson won with like a 100 laps on his tires. So, I decided to stay out when they said pit."
Once the green flag waved, Almirola took over the lead. He built up a little advantage over Mayer and continued to push for his first win since Phoenix in the spring. Meanwhile, Sheldon Creed began trying to work his way through the field on fresher tires.
Creed made his way past Mayer in the final lap of the race, but he could not get to Almirola's bumper before the checkered flag waved. He had to settle for second place while Almirola performed a celebratory burnout.
Mayer, meanwhile, used his deep research into the history of Bristol to score a podium finish and 50 points. He remained third in the Xfinity Series standings heading to Kansas Speedway for the second race of the playoffs.
"It's all in the details," Mayer said on pit road. "You don't want to tune yourself out and you also want to pay attention to history because history always repeats itself, especially at a crazy place like this.
"We have lots to be proud of. We did our job today and we had a shot at the win. If we didn't get damage, we probably would have been in Victory Lane right now, but we have a lot to be proud of."
The moves paid off for both drivers, so what is next? Almirola has some time off before he continues the No. 19 team's pursuit of the owners' championship. Mayer will continue his pursuit of the drivers' championship at Kansas Speedway.
This is a track where he feels particularly comfortable as he tries to get another win this season, as well as a guaranteed spot in the Round of 8.
"Kansas is one of those places that kind of fits my driving style," Mayer said. "We were really, really good at Homestead at the start of the year.
"We could have won that one, I felt like, if things went a little differently, so I would say that Kansas is pretty similar just because you run the wall there a little bit as well, so it can be a fun one."
