NASCAR adds two additional grid spots for Mexico Xfinity race

While the NASCAR Cup field remains capped at 40 (barring any Open Exemption Provisionals), series officials have decided that the field of 38 is not large enough for the Xfinity race in Mexico City.

Next month, NASCAR will run its first-ever Cup race in Mexico at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. Meanwhile, the Xfinity Series, which did race there between 2005 and 2008, is making a surprise return.

Ahead of the historic event, NASCAR has chosen to add two additional grid spots to reward teams who choose to make the trip down for the race. However, there are conditions for these extra 39th and 40th spots on the grid.

Those two entries are not eligible for any prize money, regardless of where they finish. They will not receive any points for race finish or stage finishing positions with all other entries elevated to receive those points instead. For example, one of these entries finishing ninth will mean that the tenth-place car receives ninth-place points.

This also means no playoff points, but should one of these entries actually win, second does not inherit the playoff benefits associated with a win.

NASCAR has introduced this new policy for Mexico only and while there are some similarities, is different from the Open Exemption Provisional, which was utilized by four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves to make the Daytona 500. The OEP is for outstanding talents coming from beyond the NASCAR world (for the most part), ensuring they can take part in the event. By contrast, these two grid spots are open to anyone.

Should there actually be 40 entries, the NASCAR Xfinity race in Mexico will have the largest Xfinity field since the 2021 season.