Two different winners in the NASCAR Mexico weekend

Max Gutiérrez snatched victory from Helio Meza on lap 60 of the sixth round of the NASCAR Mexico Series. The pass came on the main straight of Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez when the American driver was already celebrating victory.

Abraham Calderón capitalized on others' mistakes Sunday to win the seventh round. The Monterrey native benefited from a track-cutting penalty that affected several drivers during the final restart.

Meza lost at the last moment

Helio Meza controlled 59 of the 60 laps on Saturday but ended up empty-handed in the overall standings. The American won the Challenge race with a time of 1:30:14.554, just 0.155 seconds slower than Gutiérrez in the combined classification.

We had shown since qualifying that we were capable of great things, though the victory slipped through my fingers on the final lap

Photo By Nascar Media

Rubén Rovelo finished second in NASCAR Mexico Series. "I lacked a bit of power and otherwise could have fought for the win," he explained after exiting the car.

Calderón capitalized on Sunday chaos

The seventh round was decided in the final laps when several drivers cut the track during a restart. Officials ordered positions to be returned, which benefited Abraham Calderón.

"When Rubén passed me and started building a gap, I tried to push hard to take advantage of any mistake," Calderón said. "In the final laps I took advantage of that situation and stayed calm because I knew they'd have to give me the position back."

The race ended under green-white-checkered after completing 30 laps. Darkness and the first raindrops forced officials to conclude the event.

García and De Alba complete podiums

Rubén García Jr. finished second Sunday: "It was an unexpected ending, but still a good weekend for the team." The driver had placed fourth on Saturday.

Alex de Alba climbed to third on Sunday after a comeback drive. "The race was complicated early on but fortunately I could gain positions," explained the San Luis Potosí native.

Enrique Baca took third place Saturday, his best result of the season. "The team has been working hard to achieve what we got today," said the Monterrey driver.

Ortiz breaks Meza's Challenge streak

Diego Ortiz in car #11 defeated Helio Meza in the second Challenge race. It was the American's first defeat in the category all weekend.

"It was a very difficult race, but the team had everything planned," said Ortiz after his first victory. Meza had to settle for second after leading most of the race.

Santos Zanella Jr. completed the Challenge podium Sunday. The Puebla native maintains his strong points streak in the championship.

Winners' declarations

Max Gutiérrez quoted Lightning McQueen: "Speed like a rocket, attack like a bullet." The driver added: "I'm happy because I've now secured a playoff spot and want to thank the whole team, my family, my girlfriend."

Abraham Calderón finished fifth Saturday despite an early mistake that sent him to the back. "I really needed this," he said about his Sunday victory that qualified him for the playoffs.

Photo By Nascar Media

NASCAR Mexico Series Results - Round 6

Pos.	Driver	Time
1	Max Gutiérrez	1:30:14.399
2	Rubén Rovelo	1:30:14.941
3	Enrique Baca	1:30:16.525
4	Rubén García	1:30:17.052
5	Abraham Calderón	1:30:18.370
6	Alex de Alba	1:30:19.060
7	Xavi Razo	1:30:19.908
8	José Luis Ramírez	1:30:20.715
9	Julio Rejón	1:30:21.653
10	Germán Quiroga	1:30:22.952

Challenge Results - Round 6

Pos.	Driver	Time
1	Helio Meza	1:30:14.554
2	Víctor Barrales Jr.	1:30:23.651
3	Jorge de la Parra	1:30:25.577
4	Santos Zanella Jr.	1:30:29.282
5	Esteban Rodríguez	1:30:29.365

NASCAR Mexico Series Results - Round 7

Pos.	Driver	Time
1	Abraham Calderón	1:10:33.651
2	Rubén García	1:10:36.085
3	Alex de Alba	1:10:36.306
4	Julio Rejón	1:10:36.809
5	Rubén Rovelo	1:10:37.740
6	Max Gutiérrez	1:10:38.320
7	Eloy López	1:10:40.371
8	Enrique Baca	1:10:40.896
9	Irwin Vences	1:10:41.174
10	Germán Quiroga	1:10:41.436