Mexico’s Daniel Suárez has long dreamed about winning a race at Mexico City’s iconic Hermanos Rodríguez racetrack. Next year, the NASCAR Cup Series driver will get his chance.
On Tuesday, NASCAR announced that it will hold a points-paying Cup Series event in Mexico on June 15, 2025, the first international Cup Series race since 1958, which was held in Canada.
!["It’s been a dream to come back [to Mexico] as a Cup Series driver,” said Daniel Suárez, a NASCAR driver from Monterrey based in the United States.](https://mexiconewsdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GPlj_E-aUAAa2tx.jpeg)
“Since I moved out of my country … it’s been a dream to come back as a Cup Series driver,” he told The Athletic before Tuesday’s announcement. “And to be able to [race] and be competitive and have a shot to win … that would be … like winning a championship.”
The historic stock car race will take place on the same track where Formula 1 competes. There will also be an Xfinity Series race on June 14.
Adding an international points race to the Cup schedule has long been a goal for NASCAR as it sought to bring its Cup Series to new markets in major metropolitan areas.
“This has been on our radar for a long time,” said Ben Kennedy, NASCAR executive vice president and chief venue and racing innovation officer. “This is going to be a monumental event for us, the first time we’re going south of the border.”
Though a points-paying race in Mexico will be a first, NASCAR is not new to Mexico.
NASCAR — one of the top-ranked motorsports organizations in the world — has sponsored the NASCAR Mexico Series since 2004. The Hermanos Rodríguez circuit has hosted four races in the Xfinity Series from 2005-2008.
Three of Suárez’s contemporaries in the Cup Series won Xfinity Series races at the Hermanos Rodríguez track: Martin Truex Jr., Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch.
“I think it’s a great thing for the sport,” Truex, the winner of the inaugural Xfinity race in Mexico City, told The Athletic. “I remember the fans there, it was nuts. They were everywhere. And loud, I could hear them in the car when I won the race. I could hear the air horns and music and whatever the hell they were doing and it was loud. It was crazy how many people were there.”
The Mexico City track, built in 1959, features road course and oval configurations and is considered one of the most popular international racing circuits in the world. Remodeled in 2015, it is 2.67 miles long, boasts 17 turns and sits at an elevation of 7,342 feet. The track was named in honor of racing brothers Ricardo Rodríguez and Pedro Rodríguez.
With reports from The Athletic, Fox Sports and Nascar.com
