Sam Mayer went into Saturday’s IAA and Ritchie Bros. 250 at Martinsville with one objective: advance to the Championship 4. Now, following some post-race antics, there’s a distinct possibility that the eight-time NASCAR Xfinity Series winner won’t even be in the state of Arizona for Championship Weekend.
The Franklin, Wisconsin-native has caught the eye of NASCAR this week, following an on-track retaliation that the Haas Factory Team driver made after the checkered flag on Saturday, involving non-playoff driver Jeb Burton.
.@sam_mayer_ was not happy with @JebBurtonRacing after the race. pic.twitter.com/PIrQHCTTY9
— The CW Sports (@TheCW_Sports) October 26, 2025
NASCAR’s Senior Vice President of Competition, Elton Sawyer, brought attention to the incident during his weekly call-in with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio on Tuesday, telling Pete Pistone and Mike Bagley that he “anticipates something coming” from the incident, in reference to a potential penalty.
“Having those types of incidents after the checkered flag is just not something we’re going to tolerate,” Sawyer said on Tuesday. “So, we’ll get with our team [on Tuesday] here and discuss it and see what the next steps are.”
Offering some insight into that particular process, Sawyer says that NASCAR Xfinity Series Race Director Seth Peterson will likely run point on the decision-making process, which starts with the information gathering stage — taking accounts from both Jeb Burton and Sam Mayer, watching all available replays, and digesting the context of the situation from earlier in the event — before deciding what the appropriate course of action will be.
The incident in question took place following Saturday’s 250-lap contest from Martinsville Speedway, but the build-up started from the drop of the green flag, as Mayer and Burton found themselves in tight situations on track throughout the entirety of the evening.
There were points in the night where things got spicy on Burton’s radio, as the Jordan Anderson Racing driver got more and more upset about the on-track actions of the 22-year-old driver. In the late stages of the race, as the two drivers battled for a spot inside the top-10, there continued to be some contact, and that appeared to be what sent the driver of the No. 41 over the edge.
So, when the checkered flag waved, and Mayer locked in his finishing position (which didn’t end up being enough to make the Championship 4), the Haas Factory Team driver lunged into Turn 1 and took Burton out, sending them both into the outside wall.
Although Jeb Burton seemed keen to confront Sam Mayer on pit road following the event, the only discussion that even happened involving the two parties was a conversation between the driver of the No. 41 and Jordan Anderson, owner of the No. 27 Chevrolet that Burton pilots.
It’s unclear what decision NASCAR will make heading into NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship Weekend, but there remains a legitimate possibility that Mayer will not return to the series until Daytona next February. Then, the question becomes who will drive the No. 41 at Phoenix?
