NASCAR race in Mexico City worth extra effort to grow the sport

Sometimes it takes a heavy lift to move the needle.

And that's exactly what this weekend's NASCAR race at Mexico will be. A heavy lift. That moves the needle.

August 2024 — NASCAR executives join Cup Series driver Daniel Suarez to announce that the NASCAR Cup Series will race in Mexico City for the first time

The Cup Series races in Mexico City this weekend, and that is awesome.

Yes, there certainly is a group of the NASCAR fan base and the industry as a whole that doesn’t believe NASCAR should race in Mexico City.

It is a long and arduous process to move race haulers across the border and deep into the country. The United States-Mexico relations are not at their friendliest, especially in light of the protests in Los Angeles. And there are tracks in the United States that want races. 

So why go battle those logistical and political challenges to race in Mexico City?

The growth of the sport depends on it.

Going to a city with more than 20 million people exposes the sport to people who might have never seen it in person. It provides exposure at the highest level and megastars of the sport in a country where NASCAR already has a regional series.

It shows sponsors and those interested in investing in the sport that NASCAR is willing to take it globally, increasing the pool of potential sponsors and drivers. Increasing the dollars and potential talent in the sport.

Racing at Mexico City will be an event, much like racing at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum or the streets of Chicago.

Are there security concerns? Sure. Just as there were when NASCAR raced in Chicago and other places. For context, an off-duty cop was shot in an attempted robbery of the Kansas Speedway vault in 2006. 

Mexican-born NASCAR Cup Series driver