Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 Sport Clips Haircuts Toyota, winner (C) Kyle Busch, driver of the #8 Morgan & Morgan Chevrolet, (R) second place and Ryan Blaney, driver of the #12 Menards/Great Lakes Flooring Ford, third place pose on the podium in victory lane after the NASCAR Cup Series Busch Light Clash at The Coliseum at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on February 03, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images)
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NASCAR: Podium celebration planned for Cup race in Mexico

Posted by AR1 staff

For the first time after a Cup points race, NASCAR will honor the top three finishers with a podium celebration next weekend in Mexico.

While podium celebrations are common in the Olympics as well as other forms of racing, including Formula One, WEC, IMSA and IndyCar, NASCAR celebrates only the winner.

Race winner Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing, Second placed Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes and Third placed Charles Leclerc of Monaco and Ferrari stand on the podium after the F1 Grand Prix of Mexico at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez on October 29, 2023 in Mexico City, Mexico. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool //

The only time NASCAR has had a podium celebration in Cup was for the Clash at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum exhibition races from 2022-24.

Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City, which already hosts a Formula One Grand Prix race and, therefore, has a podium for a Top-3 celebration.

The NASCAR Mexico Series also will have podium finishes after its races June 13-14 at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, as it does for all its races.

Journalist Dustin Long dropped an X post updating about this news. NASCAR will hold podium celebrations for the top three finishers in its Xfinity Series and Cup Series races June 14-15 at the Mexico City racetrack. NASCAR told NBC Sports, “For this historic weekend, it felt appropriate to recognize the heritage of Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez and give a nod to the traditional international motorsports celebrations. There are currently no plans for podium-style celebrations following the Mexico City event.”

Will NASCAR also adopt a champagne-spraying ceremony along with podium celebrations in Mexico City?  Or perhaps with beer, given its fans’ affinity for the beverage.