For Daniel Suarez, it’s all smiles. The Trackhouse driver will have a home race at the iconic Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in 2025 that will see the NASCAR Cup Series race outside the United States for the first time in more than two decades.
For Pato O’Ward, there’s consternation. The most popular driver in the series has long begged for a home race and is forced to watch on while NASCAR moves in on Mexico City.
“They beat us to the cake,” O’Ward told reporters after NASCAR announced its plans.
“I strongly believe that we’re not only late, but I strongly believe there isn’t any more room in Mexico City. You need to understand that these people save up their money to go to these events.”
To make matters worse, the McLaren driver copped a barb from Penske Entertainment CEO Mark Miles, who suggested O’Ward’s popularity alone wasn’t enough to warrant IndyCar visiting Mexico.
“I will say that it’s clear that Pato isn’t as famous as the last previously famous Mexican driver – Adrian Fernandez – but he’s really gaining ground, and he’s actually on some billboards now,” Miles said.
“He’ll probably complain that I haven’t dragged him in, and that he should be the guy to go in and make the deal. I do think Pato is a natural star, and I do think this is going to happen, but in 2021, I’m quite certain they (local promoters) didn’t think it was time. But there have been a lot of conversations this time around. It hasn’t been a drive-by thing.”
Speaking of billboards. Guess who is not on one? pic.twitter.com/UhRcIH3kpt
— Pato O’Ward (@PatricioOWard) August 31, 2024
Miles’ comments went down like a cup of sick in the days after. O’Ward’s teammate Alexander Rossi took to social media with a tongue-in-cheek post and more voiced their support for him.
Miles clarified his position a day later, offering a statement labelling O’Ward a “national star” and that his popularity is “tremendous and growing.”
“It’s unfortunate that a few of my additional remarks failed to convey anything other than this viewpoint,” said Miles.
“In summary, Mexico remains a market of heavy interest, and we believe there will be an amazing IndyCar race weekend there sooner rather than later. Pato is a superstar, and his popularity and talent will be critical to making this happen.”
Reasons I can think why @PatricioOWard is actually as famous as he thinks he is while I’m sitting on couch.
1. Has fan bases so loud that when they chant we can’t actually complete an engineering debrief. In Portland of all places.
2. Needs his own merchandise tent because…
— Alexander Rossi (@AlexanderRossi) August 31, 2024
O’Ward’s frustrations are clear. IndyCar said discussions stemming back to 2021 were that local promoters thought the series wasn’t well-known enough to warrant a race in Mexico.
Those talks came off the back of O’Ward’s first win at Texas Motor Speedway in what was his third year in the series.
A lot has happened since 2021. O’Ward’s popularity has skyrocketed, especially in the wake of nearly winning the Indianapolis 500, twice.
The 25-year-old said he has had talks with the promoters of the Formula 1 Mexico City Grand Prix who wonder why IndyCar hasn’t tried to tap into the Mexican market.
It would seem that advice given three years ago has dated, and according to the Associated Press, the largest promoter in Latin America – CIE – has heard nothing from IndyCar beyond those discussions in 2021.
“I’m very close to a lot of the guys down there, including the promoter for F1,” said O’Ward.
“There hasn’t been one person I’ve run into who’s said, ‘Let’s just wait’. Everyone has said, ‘When are we going to get it down here?’
“I don’t believe those allegations (that O’Ward isn’t popular enough), to be honest, just because the stadium section (at the Mexico City track) will be more than five times what we’ll get for the Milwaukee doubleheader. That’s all they should look into.
“At this point, I just feel like a lot of people are just speaking facts, that (Penske Entertainment) has moved extremely slowly, and I don’t think blaming me for not being more popular – which they have no way to prove either – is right.
“Saying I’m not famous enough to pack up a whole place just throws your series under the bus. You should want to go to Mexico or go international because you believe in your series and not just in one of your 27 drivers. I’m just trying to do my part and the best I can.”
O’Ward isn’t alone. His peers have been left bemused by the events of the last week. Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon labelled IndyCar’s reluctance to visit Mexico “a massive miss” while his teammate Alex Palou said the series is “five years too late.”
“Everybody’s overtaking us left-right, left-right. It’s like, ‘Come on’,” Palou said.
“100 percent we should have been there. I know it’s tough. I know it’s not an easy move, but I think we knew Pato was a big thing in 2021 when he was battling for the championship.”
O’Ward responded in the best way possible on Sunday at the Milwaukee Mile, winning the first leg of the doubleheader.
He walked into the press conference sporting a sombrero. Pointed? Definitely.
Unprompted, Team Penske’s Will Power quipped: “We should be in Mexico City, not NASCAR.”
O’Ward cheekily replied: “Pato who?”
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