Such a milestone moment couldn’t have come at a more tense time. NASCAR was making its way south of the border for its first points-paying Cup Series race since 1958, and it came at a time when fierce immigration protests and unrest were going on in Los Angeles. For a sport that is thoroughly American, there were already major doubts about the series going international. But such skepticism was far from apparent in Mexico City.

The fabled road course had quite an infectious atmosphere, with the passion and enthusiasm of the Mexican fans catching many in the garage by surprise. Veteran NASCAR insider Jeff Gluck broke down the emotions of the fans at the racetrack after he met with some of them ahead of the race at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.

Jeff Gluck highlights NASCAR fans’ commitment

Mexican fans were determined to make the most of their weekend. After all, NASCAR doesn’t travel south of the border very often. In fact, the last Xfinity Series race took place at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez back in 2008, and motorsports enthusiasts south of the border have been starved for stock car racing action since then. That might probably explain why even relatively unknown drivers such as Michael McDowell and Todd Gilliland were mobbed like rock stars.

Recalling a story from Mexico, Jeff Gluck said on The Teardown podcast, “These fans came from Southern Mexico, these two women. I posted on X. They made homemade Denny Hamlin shirts. The front said, ‘I just beat your favorite driver,’ and the back said, ‘All of them.’ They rode a bus for 13 hours to get to this race from Southern Mexico. They were so geeked out about it, saying, ‘We can’t wait to do this if they come back next year.’ They hadn’t even seen the race yet, and they’re like, ‘this is the coolest thing ever, and we’re coming back next year.’”

Even after the race ended, fans lined up outside the garage area, cheering on and giving high-fives, not just to the drivers but also to crew members. Even though 90% of the ticket buyers were Mexican, only 10% of them were ‘locals’. Fans flocked to the racetrack from across the country, hoping to catch a glimpse of their favorite drivers and the Next-Gen car. Gluck shared his experience, going on to say, “We’re standing around in a group. The Americans are sharing their perspective, the Mexicans are sharing their perspective. It was such a cool moment.”

The weekend was sweetened for the fans in Mexico City after they saw their local hero Daniel Suárez triumph in the Xfinity Series race. The roar of the crowd when Daniel Suarez took the lead in stage 3 was deafening, and something even the Monterrey native had never seen before. Suarez said after his win, “In more than 20 years of my career, I have never experienced what I experienced today.” 

At a time when tensions are high between the two countries, such a cultural exchange, rooted in a shared passion, might be exactly what they need. Before the race began, the Mexican police held flags of both countries in their hands, while children sang the national anthems. NASCAR executive vice president Ben Kennedy even admitted, “Sports can be great unifiers,” and he’s absolutely spot on. As for Mexican fans, they’re just keeping their fingers crossed that the Cup Series makes its way to the iconic road course once again. And if NASCAR does return, there’s one thing fans in Mexico City would hope to see more of.

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Insider reveals a major point of frustration for Mexican fans

Watching a NASCAR race isn’t just about witnessing stock cars zipping around the track at 180 mph. It’s an experience, a day that families can spend together, soaking up the sun while witnessing some high-octane action. And the Mexican fans were determined to have a memorable experience. After all, stock car racing doesn’t make its way to the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez every day, and they were keen to get some merchandise to remember the race weekend. However, the options presented to them fell short of expectations.

Revealing what fans felt frustrated by, Jeff Gluck of The Athletic said, “The one thing I will say that the Mexican fans were not happy about, and I totally agree with them, was the merch. They thought the merch sucked. They’re like ‘We came, we don’t have merch here, and we came with money to buy merch, and the merch options were so disappointing and so limited.’ They’re like, ‘Man, NASCAR, we would have paid so much. We would have shelled out money. And we didn’t have the opportunity because the selection was so limited.’”

But despite the lack of merchandise options, fans were left satisfied after the weekend ended. There were bound to be some teething troubles, especially after NASCAR faced logistics issues while traveling to Mexico City. The sport’s executive vice-president, Ben Kennedy, even admitted, “The logistical planning wasn’t perfect. We learned a lot of things. One of the coolest parts about this weekend is seeing the reaction from the fans. The energy and the passion of the fans here is unmatched.”

So, for NASCAR to return to Mexico, all they need to do is work out the logistics, as fans are more than willing to show up south of the border.