On Sunday, the stars of the NASCAR Cup Series will tackle the 2.42-mile, 15-turn road course of Mexico City’s Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez for the running of the Viva Mexico 250 (3 p.m. ET, Prime Video, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
Here is what you need to know ahead of the 16th race of the Cup Series season:
Favorite: Shane van Gisbergen (+340, per FanDuel)
With only one top-10 finish this season (COTA), van Gisbergen’s first full-time season in the Cup Series has not gone according to plan. It might seem far-fetched for him to be the favorite going into the weekend, but his road-racing background says otherwise.
He won the inaugural Chicago Street Race in 2023, finished second at Watkins Glen last season and led 23 laps in a sixth-place effort at COTA in March. A trip south of the border to Mexico City could be just what van Gisbergen needs to turn his season around.
Underdog: Michael McDowell (+2000, per FanDuel)
As a past winner on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course in 2023, McDowell certainly knows his way around the left-and-right-turn circuits. In the 18 Next Gen races contested so far on road courses, the 40-year-old has 10 top-10s.
Outside the NASCAR ranks, McDowell has some prior experience in Mexico City. He finished 11th in his only Champ Car World Series start in 2005 and won the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series race later that year. Look for McDowell to be toward the front on Sunday.
Historic weekend on tap in Mexico City
For the first time since 1958, the Cup Series will have an international points-paying race when it sees the green flag on Sunday. The process leading up to the historic event has not been without hiccups, as several teams have experienced travel issues for various reasons.
That followed a lengthy process to ensure cars made it the track on time, which included a 40-hour drive from last weekend’s race at Michigan to Mexico City with a stop at the border along the way. Despite the logistical hurdles to get there, an unprecedented weekend awaits NASCAR’s top series on Sunday.
How will Daniel Suarez perform at home race?
Much like van Gisbergen, Suarez has had a disappointing 2025 season and currently sits 28th in the playoff standings. A return home could be the perfect opportunity for Suarez to right the ship as a past road-course winner at Sonoma in 2022.
Mexico City will be the first of three road/street courses in the next five races, giving someone like Suarez multiple chances to shake up the playoff picture. As a three-time winner at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in the NASCAR Mexico Series, don’t be surprised to see Suarez in the mix on Sunday.
Denny Hamlin set to miss first race since 2014
Hamlin will not compete in Sunday’s race at Mexico City after his fiancee, Jordan Fish, gave birth to the couple’s third child. The 57-race Cup Series winner currently sits third in the overall standings with three wins this season and will miss his first race since a back injury sidelined him in 2014.
With Hamlin not competing, three-time Xfinity Series winner Ryan Truex, who has been on standby the last two weeks, will make his first Cup Series start since 2014. As someone who has proven he has talent but lacked the sponsorship to consistently put a full season together, this is a prime opportunity for Truex to show what he can do in top-tier equipment.
