Ahead of NASCAR’s much-anticipated return to international points-paying Cup racing for the first time since 1958, a new development from the governing body has emerged just days before the inaugural Viva Mexico 250 at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.
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The change comes from the governing body to better align NASCAR in the realm of global motorsports as Cup and Xfinity Series drivers prepare to take on one of the most globally renowned venues. While NASCAR has only historically honored the race winner, even more so with the playoffs ‘win-and-you’re-in’ format, the upcoming race in Mexico City will see a deviation in that regard.
The top three finishers from the event will be honored in an F1-esque podium celebration after the race. This is not the first time NASCAR has honored the top three finishers of a race, with the Clash at the LA Memorial Coliseum from 2022-24 also seeing a similar ceremony where the promotion handed out Olympic-style medals to the podium finishers.
However, this is the first time the same is being implemented in a regular-season points-paying race. Fans of the sport did not seem too thrilled about the new addition to the NASCAR weekend.
#NASCAR to have podium celebrations after Cup and Xfinity races next weekend in Mexico …https://t.co/lF2smAeIKf
— Dustin Long (@dustinlong) June 4, 2025
Several made their thoughts clear on social media, with some of the highlights being: “Everyone gets a participation trophy like little kids? Stupid idea,” opined one fan, calling the decision stupid up front.
“Why? 2nd and 3rd are meaningless under this playoff system,” wrote another fan, with a more logical take. It can be argued both ways whether the current playoff system rewards second and third place finishers or not.
One fan seemed unhappy about how NASCAR is following the footsteps of other racing genres such as F1, IMSA, and IndyCar and wrote, “They try to be like F1 and Rally cars more and more each day. So f—ing stupid.”
Meanwhile, one die-hard follower only advocated for one winner to be celebrated at the end with a smoky burnout to cap off the weekend, writing, “Absolutely not!! Drivers win, they do burn outs, end of discussion.”
With the expected global eyeballs the sport might catch as it heads outside U.S. borders for the first time since visiting Japan for exhibition races in the late 90s, it might even seem logical to have a post-race ceremony that fans from the world over can enjoy and new fans can take to. Despite the reasoning, the core fanbase seems to disagree, and that is fine by all means as well.
