Heavily Armed Guards Flank NASCAR Haulers As They Drive Through Mexico With Military Escort

NASCAR Mexico Police Military Escort Armed Guards
iStockphoto / © Nigel Cook/News-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK
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NASCAR arrived to Mexico City for the first-ever points-paying race at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. Both the Cup Series and Xfinity Series will participate, alongside the Mexico Series.

It was an extensive operation to move the entire NASCAR circuit from Michigan to Mexico that involved a heavily armed escort upon crossing the southern border.

NASCAR previously raced its Xfinity Series in Mexico City from 2005 to 2008. However, this will be the first non-exhibition race outside of the United States for the Cup Series since 1958. The goal, much like when the NFL, NBA and MLB play internationally, is to grow the sport beyond the 50 states.

As you could imagine, there are a lot of logistics involved with the travel.

More than 130 different haulers made the trip between the two series. 37 Cup Series teams, 33 Xfinity Series teams, 27 with Champion, 10 with Goodyear Tires, nine with NASCAR, nine with the broadcast team, three with Stepps Towing, three with Sonoco and one with Featherlite Trailers. They traveled more than 293,452 miles in total, combined, which is the distance of nearly three laps around the earth at the equater.

The convoy started rolling south soon as the race ended at Michigan International Speedway on Sunday night.

It drove toward the border on Tuesday morning.

It pushed through the border not long thereafter.

They went one by one across the border.

The haulers drove through Monterrey on Tuesday afternoon.

Wednesday was a grind. Teams traveled more than 12 hours to Puebla, just south of Mexico City. They stayed in groups of 12 with approximately 20 minutes between groups. They had pre-set fuel, food and restroom stops along the way. Speed limits ranged from 80-100 km/h depending on the area.

NASCAR also received an armed escort throughout its entire drive across Mexico.

The Mexican National Guard led the charge.

Mexico NASCAR Armed Escort
JR Motorsports

Local police joined up with the National Guard to ensure their safety at each city.

By all accounts, NASCAR arrived safely to the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez without any issues. The drivers will fly in over the next few days to get acclimated. Their teams are already there!