NASCAR Cup Series Drivers Who Won and Lost The Practice Session in Mexico

NASCAR’s first-ever Cup Series race outside the U.S. hit turbulence before tires even touched the track. Yes, Friday’s kickoff in Mexico City was clouded by travel chaos, as several teams were delayed due to flight issues out of North Carolina. One chartered jet was grounded with engine trouble, forcing crews into scramble mode. However, some made a mad dash to Atlanta just to catch commercial flights. So, the road to Viva México 250 started with more pit stops than planned.

However, NASCAR’s Mexico City debut brings more than high altitude—it comes with strict track limits. Drivers must keep all four wheels inside the red-and-white rumble strips on the new 14-turn layout. Cut a corner? That’s an automatic stop-and-go penalty at Turn 8. But miss that? Expect a pit-lane pass-through. And if you skip it near the stage end or checkered flag, officials will tack on 30 seconds to your final time. So, no shortcuts—just sharp racing.

On June 14, Toby Christie shared the cumulative top lap times for all 37 drivers from the NASCAR Cup Series practice sessions. The results were a mixed bag. Ross Chastain led the field, topping the combined charts with a lap of 93.636 seconds, narrowly beating out Ty Gibbs and Ryan Blaney.

Then, Todd Gilliland turned heads with one of the fastest early laps, maintaining strong momentum. However, veterans like Chris Buescher, Ryan Preece, and Joey Logano stayed consistent inside the top 10, while Daniel Suárez delivered for the hometown crowd with a solid 10th-place effort.

But not everyone had reason to celebrate. Tyler Reddick, despite heavy pre-race prep, found himself struggling with a P32 spot—well off the mark. Kyle Busch, Alex Bowman, and even AJ Allmendinger weren’t able to crack the top 20 either.

On top of that, Bubba Wallace sat in the middle of the pack at P20, still within striking distance. But the biggest drop-offs were Katherine Legge and Ryan Truex, who ended up at the bottom of the sheet. So, with such a wide spread in times, Mexico’s altitude and tricky layout have clearly created unexpected winners and losers.

Look, earlier this season at Circuit of The Americas, officials cracked down hard—wiping out over 40 laps during practice and qualifying for violations. Well, 6 drivers were hit with stop-and-go penalties, up from four the year before. To put it in perspective, just seven course-cutting calls were made across all five road courses in 2024. But now, with stricter rules in Mexico, the margin for error is razor-thin.

However, NASCAR extended a rare gesture of flexibility for teams affected by unexpected travel chaos ahead of its historic Mexico City debut. Now, with several teams grounded in North Carolina due to charter flight issues—including at least one plane halted by an engine failure—officials granted exemptions to those unable to arrive on time for the opening practice sessions.

NASCAR officials’ latest call

June 12 was supposed to be smooth sailing for NASCAR’s historic leap across the border—but instead, turbulence hit before takeoff. Mechanical issues grounded several team flights leaving Charlotte, North Carolina, throwing travel plans into chaos.

While some scrambled for backup planes, others were left waiting. But among those hit hardest? Mexico’s own Daniel Suárez. Only five crew members from his No. 99 Trackhouse Racing team made it to Mexico City by Friday, leaving the hometown hero facing an uphill battle before wheels even touched the track.

Now, AP Sports’ Jenna Fryer jumped on X with a behind-the-scenes scoop that added fuel to the travel drama. She posted, “The comms director for Trackhouse Racing is on his way to help unload the car because several teams were stranded in CLT ystdy and aren’t here yet. Asked NASCAR how many teams were affected and got the transparent answer of ‘a select few’.” So, her update painted a chaotic picture, as even top-level staff were rolling up their sleeves to fill the gap left by stranded crews.

The travel chaos threw NASCAR’s weekend plans into a spin. With crews stuck and planes grounded, officials had to pivot fast. “Hearing NASCAR may be moving both practices to Saturday due to the logistical hurdles,” shared Matt Weaver. As a result, the Xfinity Series reshuffled its plans, trimming practice down to a single 50-minute session on Saturday. So, what was supposed to be a smooth international debut quickly turned into a high-speed scramble behind the scenes.

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