Sam Mayer Reacts After Fans Criticize Him for Taking Out Playoff Contenders at Kansas Infinity Race

During the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at the Kansas Speedway, there was a big wreck. It involved Sam Mayer, Harrison Burton and Noah Gragson, with the latter two being Playoff contenders. Apparently, Mayer touched Burton, with the latter losing control and colliding with Gragson alongside him.

He said, “I’ll take full credit for that. I thought that the #20 was going to side-draft the #9 a little harder and a little longer. So I tried to move up to push the #20, as I wanted to clear the #9 so I could race the #20. It’s just a racing deal in my opinion. Obviously, everyone’s going to have their own opinions and entitled to it.”

Many were not happy with Sam Mayer

Of course, as a result of this crash, the Playoff vs non-Playoff driver debate flared up once again. This is because the actions of a non-Playoff driver proved costly for his Playoff counterpart. Several drivers in the Cup Series have spoken about this issue, and there were also some opinions from Kyle Busch.

After last weekend’s Cup race at Texas, an irate Kyle Busch bemoaned the ‘complete lack of respect’. According to him, such antics have been taking place over the last four or five years. With a newer generation of hungry and motivated drivers coming in, their eagerness is not well-appreciated. Busch fears that they could potentially jeopardize championship contenders in the future.

The Joe Gibbs Racing driver acknowledged that the fans may love the carnage and excitement, but that does not translate for the drivers. He also suspected that when the 2022 season arrives, the car owners will probably share the same sentiment. Especially when they could be potentially forced to pay exorbitant bills on the new car. So, actions like the one that Sam Mayer did are definitely not appreciated, even if he was truly apologetic.

READ MORE: Kyle Busch Slams Non-Playoff NASCAR Drivers at Texas Motor Speedway