{"id":7574,"date":"2020-02-10T22:24:31","date_gmt":"2020-02-11T03:24:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonmotorsport.com\/?p=7574"},"modified":"2020-02-10T22:24:31","modified_gmt":"2020-02-11T03:24:31","slug":"arca-sam-mayer-wins-east-series-opener-at-new-smyrna","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2020\/02\/10\/arca-sam-mayer-wins-east-series-opener-at-new-smyrna\/","title":{"rendered":"ARCA: Sam Mayer wins East Series Opener at New Smyrna"},"content":{"rendered":"

He didn’t lead until lap 152 and he had to hold off a late model ringer to do it, but Sam Mayer\u00a0<\/strong>earned a trip to victory lane in Monday night’s ARCA Menards East Series season opener.<\/p>\n

As the defending tour champion, it was reasonable to believe that Mayer would put on a strong performance at New Smyrna Speedway, though it was improbable on the way it came about.<\/p>\n

ARCA: Sam Mayer wins East Series Opener at New Smyrna<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Mayer started the 175-lap race from the sixth position and would have to fight his way to the front of the pack.<\/p>\n

After a pair of cautions, Mayer found himself in second place by lap 100, trying to chase down\u00a0Derek Griffith\u00a0<\/strong>for the lead.<\/p>\n

Griffith was racing for Chad Bryant Racing in a one-off for the team, since he was already planning on racing in the World Series of Asphalt at the short track this week.<\/p>\n

Oh boy, was the No. 2 car fast.<\/p>\n

Griffith paced the field for a vast majority of the race.<\/p>\n

Mayer attempted to get by on a variety of occasions, but could only make it to about where the steering wheel sits on Griffith’s car.<\/p>\n

Fortunately for Mayer, Griffith and his team decided to run a strategy that would have them pit later on in the race for tires.<\/p>\n

They didn’t get the chance to do it under caution until lap 152, which would give Mayer the lead, but keep Griffith within striking distance.<\/p>\n

Griffith – being a late model driver – made a mistake.<\/p>\n

In ARCA, drivers are not allowed to pass the pace car on the way to pit road – something that is normal in late model racing – and Griffith did so on his pit stop.<\/p>\n

That meant he would go to the tail-end of the longest line of the field with just over 20 laps left to race.<\/p>\n

A handful of laps later,\u00a0Tanner Gray\u00a0<\/strong>spun his tires while being three-wide coming out of turn four, and going up into the fence to bring out a red flag and a caution.<\/p>\n

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\ud83d\udea8 Three wide didn't work out \ud83d\udea8#ARCAMenards<\/a> | #Skips175<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/6B5aymoXR2<\/a><\/p>\n

— ARCA Menards Series (@ARCA_Racing) February 11, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n