NASCAR Hall of Famer and Hendrick Motorsports co-owner and vice chairman Jeff Gordon will take on a pivotal role at the upcoming Viva Mexico 250.

The race, scheduled to be held in Mexico City at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, will mark the Cup Series’ first points-scoring race outside of the U.S. since 1958, with the Xfinity Series also traveling south of the border.

Ahead of Sunday’s Cup Series race, Hendrick Motorsports announced that four-time champion Gordon has been awarded the title of “Official Commander,” with the 53-year-old set to give the command at the renowned Formula 1 circuit. It comes after he recently admitted his “terrifying experience” in the car with his kids. 

Responding to the announcement, Gordon took to social media where he wrote, “Can’t wait to give the command for @NASCAR ’s first ever Cup Series race at #NASCARMexico.”

Once the green flag has flown, Gordon will watch on as Kyle Larson, William Byron, Chase Elliott, and Alex Bowman all battle it out for supremacy around the 2.42-mile track.

For Larson, a series-high fourth win this year is on the line, having previously won at Homestead-Miami, Bristol, and Kansas City. As for series-leader Byron, he’ll be aiming to record just his second win of the season, having won the Daytona 500 for the second year in a row in February.

For Chase Elliott, Mexico City represents an opportunity to clinch his first top-three finish of the season, having finished fourth twice through the first 15 races. Meanwhile, the fact that Bowman will be racing at all is something of a miracle after his brutal wreck at Michigan, which saw him go nose-first into the wall.

Thankfully, while Bowman admitted in an interview with Amazon Prime that the incident “hurt, a lot,” Gordon has since told Danielle Trotta that while the 32-year-old is “very sore,” there is “no reason to believe he won’t be in the car at Mexico City.”

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That being said, while all four of Hendrick Motorsports’ stars are good to go for the highly anticipated race, whether or not they will make it seems to be another question. Whilst aboard his flight bound for Mexico City, Xfinity Series star Ryan Ellis revealed on social media, “Plane attempted takeoff, plane made a small boom, we are headed back.” As a result, Ellis and the rest of the passengers were “back in Charlotte,” as per a follow-up post.

Fellow Xfinity Series driver Austin Green also provided an update on social media, posting, “Engine blew up going down the runway to Mexico City. Hope we can all make it in time for practice tomorrow.”

Along with this flight, it seems another also experienced an issue, with reporter Matt Weaver stating that “NASCAR tells us here in Mexico that they are aware and that industry personnel are being placed on different planes to Mexico City.” Subsequently, Weaver added, “Those on the plane that had the engine issue right before takeoff have been sent home or back to their race shops.”

Attorney General Dave Sunday announced that his office is again partnering with Pocono Raceway for its annual Drug Take Back event during NASCAR race weekend at the track from June 20 to 22 for “The Great American Getaway 400.” 

Attendees on any of the three event days can bring unused and outdated prescription medications to the track and safely dispose of them at the Office of Attorney General’s station outside the main entrance at the raceway, under the flag pole.

Those who drop off prescription drugs will be given a voucher to return to the Pocono Raceway on Tuesday, July 8, to drive their own vehicle around “The Tricky Triangle.”

“The opioid epidemic continues to plague communities across Pennsylvania, and I have made prevention, deterrence, and treatment as top priorities for my office,” Attorney General Sunday said. “This take back event is the perfect opportunity to dispose of potentially dangerous medication in a safe way that keeps the drugs out of the wrong hands. I am thankful for the continued partnership with the Pocono Raceway on this proactive measure that can save lives.”

Since 2017, the Office of Attorney General’s statewide Drug Take Back program has collected and destroyed nearly 400 tons of prescription drugs.

“Pocono Raceway is a proud partner of the Office of Attorney General and remains focused on doing our small part to help our guests dispose of unused and expired prescription medications in a safe manner,” Ben May, Pocono Raceway President, said. “We encourage everyone visiting Pocono Raceway between June 20-22nd to visit the Office of Attorney General’s booth – next to our large American flag behind the grandstands – to safely dispose of your medications.”

Representatives from the Office of Attorney General will also host a table on Saturday, June 21, at Kids’ Day, where activities and swag will be available to youth and their families.

In 2022, the Office of Attorney General released a special report on fentanyl becoming the dominant opioid in Pennsylvania that is increasingly found in counterfeit pills. The report notes that just one fentanyl-laced counterfeit pill is enough to cause an overdose.

Pocono Raceway Drug Take Back Weekend is the only large-scale drug take back program of its kind in Pennsylvania. It hopes to provide an example for other large venues and sports teams and show how important it is to take part in these initiatives to combat the opioid epidemic and keep the Commonwealth safe.

Pocono Raceway PR

The NASCAR Chicago Street Race has landed Arby’s as the sponsor. On Wednesday, NASCAR announced the fast-food chain will join the league as the newest founding partner of the race, which will take place at Chicago’s Grant Park on Sunday, July 6. Arby’s is no stranger to NASCAR as it serves as an anchor partner for Rick Ware Racing (RWR) and driver Cody Ware in the Cup Series.

“It’s a watershed moment anytime you have a new brand joining the sport for the first time, especially when it’s a partner like Arby’s with such a unique, recognizable brand,” Craig Stimmel, Senior Vice President, Chief Commercial Officer, NASCAR, said in a press release. “The fact that we’re welcoming Arby’s to NASCAR on the streets of Chicago speaks to the tremendous momentum behind the NASCAR Chicago Street Race and the sport overall.”

More on Arby’s and the Chicago Street Race

“Arby’s is thrilled to hit the track as a Founding Partner of the 2025 NASCAR Chicago Street Race,” Jeff Baker, Chief Marketing Officer at Arby’s, said. “This marks an exciting moment for our brand in the world of motorsports, with one of the most dynamic and groundbreaking events in racing. Nothing goes better with NASCAR than one of our delicious Arby’s sandwiches, and we can’t wait to bring the meats to the streets for race fans and Arby’s fans in Chicago and beyond.

Arby’s joins Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois and Xfinity’s Xumo brand as the third Founding Partner of the 2025 Chicago Street Race. The restaurant was founded in 1964 and has 3,600 locations around the world. Its main headquarters are located in Atlanta.

“Arby’s is all about bringing joy to their fans, and that’s exactly our goal with the NASCAR Chicago Street Race,” Julie Giese, NASCAR Chicago Street Race President, said. “As anticipation rises in the Chicago market, we know that Arby’s will be a perfect fit for the fun and enjoyment that we plan to bring back to Grant Park this Independence Day Weekend.”

The Chicago Street Race began in 2023 and Shane van Gisbergen won the Cup Series event that year. Alex Bowman won the race in 2024.

Alex Bowman was involved in a terrifying wreck at Michigan International Speedway on Sunday, and while he is expected to race in Mexico City, Hendrick Motorsports has placed Anthony Alfredo on standby.

Denny Hamlin won his third race of the season at Michigan on Sunday, but only after a red flag brought the contest to a halt after Bowman’s No.48 Hendrick Motorsports car was sent head-first into the wall at high speed. Bowman was shaken up after the crash, but avoided serious injury.

Hendrick Motorsports vice chairman Jeff Gordon gave a promising update ahead of the first NASCAR Cup Series race in Mexico, claiming that he expects Bowman to race as usual. However, Alfredo is ready to replace Bowman if he’s deemed unfit to race on Sunday.

Alfredo does all of the simulator work for Hendrick Motorsports and will compete in the Xfinity Series race at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez. He is also mentally preparing for Sunday’s Cup Series race in the event that he’s needed.

Bowman made a fast start to the 2025 season, placing in the top 10 in five of his first six races. However, he has failed to finish in three of his last nine races after suffering two crashes and an engine fault. The latest incident at Michigan was one of the biggest wrecks of the season.

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The No. 48 Chevrolet was running in the 29th position when a collision between the cars of Austin Cindric and Cole Custer compromised him. Contact was made with Bowman, and his car slammed into the outside wall and damaged the barrier.

“Yeah, that hurt a lot,” Bowman told Amazon Prime after leaving the infield care center. “That was probably top of the board on hits I’ve taken, and unfortunately, I’ve taken a lot of hits, so hate that for the Ally 48 team.

“Looks like the 41 got loose or the 2 got into him or something, then at that point you’re just along for the ride. Couldn’t really do anything except think, ‘oh s—, this is about to hurt’, really. So I hate that for our team, and it’s been a rough two months, so just got to keep digging.

“I mean, honestly, we were pretty decent yesterday, I thought. I was pretty optimistic about today, and we completely missed it to start the race, then obviously got super loose and had long pit stops, making adjustments trying to make it better, and never really got a chance to race again after that.

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“Confident that my guys would’ve got the car better and we could’ve got back up there, but unfortunately, when you get in the back like that, s— gets pretty crazy, and stuff like that happens.”

After the crash in Michigan, reporters asked Bowman if he was more afraid to compete after suffering another major scare. In April 2023, Bowman missed several weeks of racing after suffering a fractured vertebra in a crash, and he hurt his back again at Michigan.

“No, I’m not afraid. I wouldn’t even say concerned,” Bowman said. “I don’t know, I’m a race car driver, I hit s—. I would like to stop hitting s—.”

By Jerry Jordan, Editor

MEXICO CITY – After one charter plane was delayed getting to Charlotte, N.C. and another charter plane had engine issues that sent crews from multiple teams back to their race shops on Thursday, NASCAR canceled Xfinity Series practice and altered Cup Series activities for Friday.

The problems began when one of the charter planes coming from Singapore, was delayed, according to a post on X by Dale Earnhardt Jr. Then, on Thursday morning, reports began filtering in that a second plane had an issue on takeoff and passengers heard, “a boom.” At first, it was believed the plane had blown a tire but the pilot told NASCAR teams he believed it was birdstrike that damaged one of the engines.

The plane was heading down the runway at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport and about to take flight, according to passengers on the plane, when it had to abort the takeoff. The aviation monitoring website, Flight Aware, confirmed delays for both planes heading to Mexico City; however, one of them, a Boeing 767, did take off at 3:56 p.m. EST. It landed safely at Mexico City Santa Lucía Airport, an airport south of the primary airport in Mexico City, where most commercial flights land.

According to Flight Aware, the planes are owned by Omni Air International, based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. A phone call made after hours was sent to a voicemail system where a message was left.

NASCAR driver Ryan Ellis and teams from Trackhouse, DGM Racing, Haas Factory Team (Xfinity) and Sam Hunt Racing teams were on that plane.

On Lap 67 of the NASCAR Cup race at Michigan International Speedway, Hendrick Motorsports driver Alex Bowman was racing deep in the pack when he found himself in a bad situation. After contact from Cole Custer, he ended up slamming the outside wall in a head-on impact that lifted the rear tires off completely the ground. Bowman’s No. 48 Chevrolet hit the wall at roughly 150mph, immediately ending his race.

Bowman later described it as perhaps the biggest hit of his career. Unfortunately, the 32-year-old has a history of injuries. He suffered a concussion following a crash at Texas Motor Speedway in 2022, missing five races as a result. In 2023, he suffered a back injury in a sprint car crash that forced him to miss three Cup races.

Thankfully, Bowman has been medically cleared to race this weekend in Mexico City despite some soreness. The road course event is a big opportunity for Bowman as his most recent win in the Cup Series came at the Chicago Street Course last summer.

Alex Bowman, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Photo by: James Gilbert / Getty Images

As a precaution, Hendrick will have Anthony Alfredo on standby for Bowman at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. Alfredo, who competes full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, also works as a simulator driver for HMS. He has 42 starts in the Cup Series, including one start earlier this year at Talladega Superspeedway.

Bowman currently sits 13th in the championship standings after the first 15 races this year and is hoping for some positive momentum. He has finished 27th or worse in seven of the last nine races, including five finishes of 35th or worse in a dismal run for the No. 48 team.