NASCAR made history this weekend. For the first time since 1958, the stock car racing series ventured into international waters for a points-paying Cup Series race. The Viva Mexico 250 was flagged off to a roaring crowd at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez track. The Mexico City road course is usually known for hosting F1’s Mexico City Grand Prix. However, as NASCAR takes a step forward, series legend Jeff Gordon is hugely optimistic about it.
The four-time Cup Series champion and Hendrick Motorsports Vice Chairman is one of NASCAR’s most prominent racers of all time. With his 93 race trophies, Jeff Gordon is the go-to person about all things NASCAR. He has had peeks into F1 and other series as well, and Gordon emphasized his home series’ superiority over others.
Jeff Gordon draws a meaningful parallel
Back in 2003, the legend “swapped” cars with Formula 1 star Juan Pablo Montoya on the road course at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. That gave Jeff Gordon his first action behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car as he sampled the FW24. The experience lent Gordon a lens to examine the key contrast between NASCAR and F1.
Gordon said two decades ago, “One of the biggest differences was the braking. In an F1 car, you drive deeper into the corner, stand on the brake, downshift, and turn all at the same time. In a stock car, it’s brake, wait a little bit, downshift, downshift, okay now it’s time to turn.” NASCAR’s demand for technical agility has persisted all these years later, and Gordon recently claimed that no one does it better than NASCAR.
NASCAR has now forayed into international racetracks, and the road has just begun. As the series tackles racetracks usually frequented by F1 and other series, Jeff Gordon feels very optimistic about the global expansion. He put his home series on a pedestal over other disciplines in the pre-race interview at Mexico City. Gordon said, “Well, it’s super easy. The product on the track speaks for itself. I mean, we put on the best racing… I’ll put our racing product on track up against any form of motorsports in the world. And it’s a great show. It’s unpredictable; you don’t know who’s going to win. Very talented race car drivers and cars. I think, you know, when you really get into the guts of the race car, are far more technical than maybe people understand. And they sound great.”
The unpredictability of the Cup Series in comparison to its open-wheel counterparts in Formula One is quite stark. Just take the most recent 2024 season comparison. The Cup Series saw over 15+ different winners across the season, while Formula One just saw 7 different race winners as Max Verstappen won the title for the fourth year in a row! And even this weekend, the Xfinity and Cup Series produced some compelling storylines in Mexico City, as Gordon had predicted.
Both the Xfinity Series and Cup Series races were absolute spectacles to watch. During the Chilango 150 race on Saturday, Daniel Suarez went through a tumble of problems to win. He switched to a backup car after a qualifying mishap and dealt with a group of hungry rivals, chaotic restarts, and a roaring home crowd expecting him to win.
Then the Viva Mexico 250 race witnessed Shane Van Gisbergen break an interminably long winless streak. So Jeff Gordon heavily agrees with NASCAR’s compatibility with the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez track, as he said ahead of the Cup Series race: “You saw the spectacular race yesterday. I think you’ll see another, you know, very exciting race today.”
What made the Cup Series race more exciting was Jeff Gordon’s presence. The Hendrick Motorsports vice chairman had an important role to play in Mexico City.
Captivating the crowds with his voice
Well, Jeff Gordon’s popularity spilled over from the racetrack. After he wound up his racing career in 2016, the HMS veteran worked as a FOX Sports broadcaster for 6 seasons. Over his career, he has made numerous mainstream appearances on late-night TV shows, hosted Saturday Night Live, and featured in several Pepsi commercials. On Sunday, Gordon’s visibility to motorsport fans just received a boost.
The NASCAR Hall of Famer was named the Official Commander of the inaugural Viva Mexico 250. Gordon stood alongside women dressed in traditional Mexican attire at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez and started the race. He sprinkled both Spanish and English in his command: “Hola, Mexico. ¡Pilotos, start your engines!” This salute to the confluence of the two countries left the audience dazzled.
NASCAR Hall of Famer and Amazon Prime video broadcaster Dale Earnhardt Jr joked with Adam Alexander on air, “Jeff Gordon still got it.” Gordon’s iconic call on the track also justified NASCAR calling one of their legends instead of a Mexican figure for the commanding role. One fan agreed with Dale Jr’s opinion on X: “Unc still got it. Jeff Gordon doing the ‘start your engines’ command in 2025 is exactly what I needed today.” Somebody else said, “Jeff Gordon throws a little Spanglish on it. That’s how you do it.”
Evidently, Jeff Gordon spiced up NASCAR’s entry into an international track. The road ahead also seems bright and clear with the Hall of Famer’s optimistic words.
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