1. Could Off-Track Factors Make NASCAR in Mexico City a One and Done?
The NASCAR Cup Series will make history this weekend with its first points event held in Mexico.
Due to factors not of its own doing, Sunday’s (June 15) race in Mexico City at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez course could be the series’ first…and last race south of the border.
There’s no way of avoiding it. Basically, everything can become a flashpoint issue these days if anyone wants it to.
In truth, when the Daytona 500, NASCAR’s biggest race, had the President of the United States on hand to pace the field, it may as well have been the sport’s leadership saying that they fully support the current occupant of the White House.
But flash forward a few months, a time that included the United States’ national anthem being booed by Canadian hockey fans.
Events over the past week, with the backdrop of immigration and the methods being used to enforce said immigration, some from the very country of this weekend’s race, have been all over the news.
It’s even prompted back-and-forth comments from high-profile politicians, including California’s governor, who has also received calls from the opposing political side for his arrest. Even the leader of this country where NASCAR will be this weekend has weighed in.
To quote Kevin Bacon’s character in National Lampoon’s Animal House,
“Thank you sir, may I have another?”
Yes, the sport that represents the American every-person is heading to a country where, if previous reactions mean anything, the American national anthem (if it plays) will be booed. A place where it’s not out of the question for someone to get on TV holding up an upside-down American flag.
The truth of it is that relations right now between the United States and Mexico, depending on how you view it, are a pot about to boil over, and Sunday could very well be a sign of how well or poorly a neighboring country sees America.
This weekend’s race, suffice to say, is a huge deal for NASCAR. However, everything going on within the background has the potential to make it something that may not be worth the effort again.
It’d be a shame, but it’d be part of the interesting times that we find ourselves in.
2. Could Adversity Fuel 23XI and Front Row Motorsports?
Call it bunker mentality, us against the world or ‘him or me.’
Regardless, it’s what 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports are in the midst of right now.
Depending on how the next layer unfolds in the legal proceedings between those two race teams against NASCAR, each of them could very well be racing minus a charter in a matter of weeks.
Oh, this does not mean that they won’t race, but it does add up to that there will be less financial payout and, more importantly, no mulligan if a qualifying effort is one of disaster.
Is that pressure? Absolutely so.
But in a segment of the season where both teams have multiple drivers seeking a postseason spot, it could play right into their hands. Based on what happened on Sunday at Michigan International Speedway, these circumstances could be an unexpected burst at the right time.
Bubba Wallace and Tyler Reddick may not have a win yet, but both are in what’d be considered, for now, a safe position in terms of being away from the postseason bubble. That position was galvanized this past week with Wallace’s fourth-place finish and Reddick’s solid all-around day in which he came in 13th but more key, earned 31 points, a total within the top 10 overall.
Outside of 23XI, another team involved on the legal side of things, Zane Smith snagged some nice momentum by way of a seventh-place run after starting tenth.
In a part of the season where momentum gets to be more important, that unexpected motivation could be a difference-maker for 23XI and FRM.
3. It’s Win Or Bust Season For Drivers Like Ty Gibbs
To say that 2025 has been a roller coaster for Ty Gibbs would be an understatement. He had a nice string of finishes in the spring with showings of 13th, to go with a pair of top 10s at Martinsville Speedway, Darlington Raceway and Bristol Motor Speedway. At the same time, Gibbs failed to finish twice in three races early on and, entering last weekend, fared no better than 17th in five races.
That’s why one would think that a third-place run on Sunday at Michigan would have put a spring in the step of the driver of the No. 54 machine.
But the fact that there did not appear to be so is understandable, for sure. The reality is this: Gibbs is in an unenviable position right now. Not only does he reside 24th in points, but he’s also 52 points below the cutline. By all accounts, it’s win or bust mode right now.
A good finish isn’t enough, and any demeanor by a driver that is near Gibbs’ position should be expected at this stage of the season.
4. Dominating and Not Winning Isn’t Back-Breaking For William Byron
Winning is certainly nice, which is why running well and not getting a win can sting. Just ask William Byron, who since the Daytona 500 has had no problem leading laps, 758 to be exact, and has still come up shy of a win in the Cup Series.
But here’s the good thing for Byron and Rudy Fugle. They don’t have to win a race right now, as that season-opening victory locked them into the postseason.
That means that the No. 24 bunch has the luxury of working on running well and fine-tuning things up until the postseason. Whether it’s tracks that’ll be seen again or seeing what other setup combos will do, right now, it is all about perfection over 26 races for Byron. The fact that the No. 24 team has shown that it can do that shows it has the expectation to contend for a title.
With its resources, there is no reason for the No. 24 not to be a factor each week as well as have a title shot late in the playoffs. So far, both appear to be very realistic expectations.
5. This Week’s Travel: High on Mileage and Low on Cost Containment
Give or take, it’s at least 36 hours of driving from the site of last week’s race in Michigan all the way south to where teams in NASCAR’s top two series have to get to this weekend at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City.
This isn’t just a quick dash across the border like going to Canada and racing on the streets of Montreal or Toronto. It’s a jaunt multiple hours south into Mexico.
When NASCAR moved the preseason Busch Light Clash event from the Los Angeles Coliseum to Bowman Gray Stadium, the much shorter travel was likely welcome to anyone having anything to do with transporting cars for an event.
Going to Mexico City with no off week the week before, from Michigan, makes you wonder how much regard goes into trying to help teams cut costs. The obvious layup to make it easier on teams would be bookending this event with either Texas Motor Speedway or Circuit of the Americas, while even backing it next to EchoPark Speedway or Kansas Speedway could make it easier on teams by a few hours.
NASCAR, for sure, has ways to help contain costs, but travel logistics continue not to be one of them.
Brad joined Frontstretch.com in 2020 and contributes to the site's 5 Points To Ponder column and other roles as needed. A graduate of the University of Georgia's Henry W. Grady School of Journalism and Mass Communication, he has covered sports in some capacity for more than 20 years with coverage including local high school sports, college athletics and minor league hockey. Brad has received multiple awards for his work from the Georgia Press Association.