Driver Juan Montoya, who is not Mexican, helps bridge Mexico and NASCAR. You wouldn’t think rednecks and Mexicans could get along, but NASCAR is building that Rainbow Bridge. NASCAR only adds another “brick” to the Colombian and Mexican “Business” Partnership that has evolved over the last 30 years. Link

Montoya stormed from 19th to the lead — spinning out teammate Scott Pruett to get it — on his way to winning Sunday’s Busch Series race in Mexico City, the first victory of his NASCAR career. No penalty for Montoya for wrecking Pruett. Not even Dog the Bounty Hunter could save NASCAR from Mexican jail if Montoya was stripped of the win because of a penalty. Abracadabra, Homes

The Colombian star who jumped from Formula One to NASCAR late last season gained a strong following in Mexico with Formula N victories in the 1990s. Now the Mexican fans hope a fellow Latino might finally win a NASCAR race on their soil.

“Montoya heads the stars,” roared the headline in Mexican daily Diario de Mexico in its preview for Sunday’s Telcel-Motorola 200.

“It’s an honor to be racing alongside a driver like Montoya, a Latino who has had so much success in racing,” Mexico City native Jorge Goeters said. “Montoya is a born champion.”