MEXICO CITY – The wait was finally over for German Quiroga as he walked on stage Thursday night at the el Teatro Manolo Fábregas to accept his 2009 NASCAR Mexico Series championship trophy during the season-ending awards show.
Quiroga, a two-time series runner-up, claimed the 2009 title with three wins, 11 top fives and 12 top 10s in 14 races. He also led a series-high 381 laps.
“This is fantastic,” Quiroga said. “After two years almost winning and to finally do it was a great accomplishment for us here in Mexico. The series has grown tremendously under the NASCAR name and it’s an honor to win this championship.”
In each of the previous two seasons, Quiroga had come close to winning the championship. He lost by just four points to Rafael Martinez in 2007, and then entered the 2008 finale with the points lead but was caught up in an multi-car accident that gave the title to Antonio Perez.
This time, however, Quiroga opened the season with a win at Aguascalientes and continued to build on his lead throughout the year. He added victories at San Luis Potosi in May and Monterrey in Sept. He had a large enough lead to wrap up the title at Chiapis with one race remaining and finished with a 281-point margin of victory over runner-up Rogelio Lopez. It was the biggest points margin in series history.
“I grew up a lot in racing this year,” Quiroga said. “I was a lot more patience, saving my car for the end. We kept pushing all year to win more and more races.”
Also honored Thursday night were the rookie of the year, 17-year-old Alex Capin, who finished 23rd in points; Most Popular Driver Jorge Arteaga; pole position winner, Ruben Rovelo; most improved driver, Jose Luis Ramirez; rookie official of the year, Daniel Guerrero Torres; officials of the year, Luis Fernando Diaz Juarez and Jorge Tapis; winners of the season-ending pit stop competition, the Monster Energy team of Hugo Oliveras; Pennzoil Crew Chief Award, Marco Paez of Telcel; Outstanding Team Award, 2B Racing, for their support of the events at Queretaro.
The top 10 drivers in the final standings were also recognized on stage.
In addition, the series recognized the top drivers in its support division, the Mini-Stock Division. Ernesto Guerrero was the series champion.
