Truex triumphs in Mexico rally
Home drivers had a good showing in the race, with Ford's Jorge Goeters leading the pack for most of the first 20 laps.
Cloudy skies and cool winds could not keep the crowds away as more than 94,000 cheered Martin Truex Jr to victory in the first major NASCAR Busch Series points race outside the US on Sunday.
Driving a Chevrolet for the Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER team, Truex won the 201.44-mile race in two hours, 58 minutes and 49 seconds at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez track, in what was also the first street course event for the series since 2001.
"I knew I had a good car," said Truex, who before the $2.3 million race admitted to having very little street course experience.
"It was awesome all day and (obviously) it was best at the end."
Pelon Pelo Pico Chevrolet team driver Kevin Harvick came in second place, and Carl Edwards took third in a Ford over 80 laps on a twisting, dusty and bumpy track that drivers said made it difficult to overtake.
Mexico has a strong racing tradition, having hosted Formula One events at the Hermanos Rodriguez track from 1963 to 1970 and then from 1986 through 1992, but attracting NASCAR was viewed as a coup for fans.
"It gives us a lot of pleasure to be able to see NASCAR here," said Guillermo Pichardo, a Mexico City mechanic who has followed auto racing for as long as he can remember.
However, he and other fans were aggrieved that race organisers had failed to completely recreate the NASCAR experience.
Race-goers said they had been overcharged on tickets and complained there was not enough pre-race entertainment.
"They should have done something to bring up the excitement, the mood of the fans," Pichardo added.
NASCAR opted to race in Mexico in an attempt to expand its fan base beyond US borders.
The 94,229 people in attendance exceeded the organisers' expectations of between 60,000 and 80,000 and spectators said that had a lot to do with the 10 Mexican drivers racing this weekend.
"This is not very big yet, but it will grow slowly," said local businessman Adrian Velazquez.
"I actually thought the turnout would be less, but I think driver Michel Jourdain Jr was quite a draw in the end."
Home drivers had a good showing in the race, with Ford's Jorge Goeters leading the pack for most of the first 20 laps.
Chevrolet driver Adrian Fernandez led the race briefly in its middle stages and was given a rousing reception in the grandstands after finishing in 10th spot.
