NASCAR announced on Tuesday that it will fly to Mexico in 2025 for its first international Cup Series race in modern history. The groundbreaking move comes years after multiple discussions of taking the sport abroad for a points-paying event. While this will be the first time that most of the field will race in Mexico, a few have already been there and won.
Advertisement
The Xfinity Series (Formerly Nationwide Series) held races in Mexico between 2005 and 2008. Four drivers, three of whom are currently active, won these races and stand apart with distinction. In 2005, Martin Truex Jr. drove the No. 8 Chevrolet for Chance 2 Motorsports in the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez road course. He secured his first victory there and won five more races on his way to the championship.
In 2006, Denny Hamlin was a Cup Series rookie. He still flew down to the sunny city and won its second Xfinity Series race. He finished runner-up in 2007, while Juan Pablo Montoya emerged as the victor that year. It was Montoya’s first win in the Xfinity series and was nearly three-and-a-half months before his maiden Cup Series victory, which was at the Sonoma Raceway.
The 2008 season was the last time that NASCAR raced in Mexico. That year, Kyle Busch was in his maiden Cup Series season with Joe Gibbs Racing. Coach Gibbs allowed him a partial schedule in the second tier and put him on an international flight. Rowdy returned home with winning honors.
Now after 16 years, NASCAR is headed back to Mexico in 2025, this time with the Cup Series as well.
Mexican drivers who’ve made a mark in NASCAR
Carlos Contreras was the first full-time driver from the country in NASCAR. He started 75 Truck Series races and 35 Xfinity Series throughout his career. Adrián Fernández was an 11-time winner in IndyCar who explored NASCAR in the 2000s. He drove for Rick Hendrick and started 10 races in the Xfinity Series.
Two-time IndyCar winner Michel Jourdain Jr. attempted a full-time Xfinity season in 2005 but saw it cut short. He also made sporadic appearances in the Truck Series. Rubén Pardo made a breakthrough for Mexican drivers in NASCAR when he won an ARCA Menards Series East race in 2006.
Rogelio López joined him as a winner on this stage the next year by beating the current Cup Series hero Joey Logano in Nashville. Trackhouse Racing superstar Daniel Suarez is unquestionably the brightest star of them all. He won the 2016 Xfinity Series championship and is now a notable figure in the Cup Series. He has two wins in the premier tier and is a crucial part of his team’s efforts towards securing a title.
