All-Latino Racing Unit a First for NASCAR

Cousins Rudy Rodriguez and Mike Vazquez are hoping for a four-year dream to become a reality this weekend.

The pair are co-owners of the Hispanic Racing Team (HRT), which they formed in 1999 seeking to bring diversity to the NASCAR racing circuit. Sunday, at the Atlanta Motor Speedway, it will be the first NASCAR race team where the owners, driver and primary sponsors are Latino.

Driving the HRT car will be Colombian native Roberto Guerrero, whose previous driving experience comes on Formula One, CART and Indy Racing League tracks. The car is sponsored by Ciclon, a South American energy drink company.

“It’s very exciting for us in the respect that our dream is finally coming to fruition,” said Rodriguez, a founding member of the NASCAR Diversity Council who grew up in Dallas but now, like Vazquez, lives in Miami.

“We’ve overcome the obstacles and roadblocks over the years and now we are finally ready to make our [all-Latin] debut in Atlanta.”

HRT has been in three races, but each time the car was driven by Kentucky native David Green, the 1994 NASCAR Busch champion.

Trivia time: Which was the last American League team to win the World Series in its first appearance?

Lighting it up: Nick Canepa of the San Diego Union-Tribune has hopped on the Chargers’ bandwagon after the team’s surprising 6-1 start.

“The Rams, Ravens and Patriots, the past three Super Bowl winners, were nobodies before they won. It’s the way of the NFL these days. The Chargers have been nobodies for six years, so they have impeccable credentials.”

Stay put, Tito: Oscar De La Hoya is pressing Felix Trinidad for a rematch. But HBO boxing columnist Ivan Goldman hopes Trinidad resists De La Hoya.

“Much as I would love to see it, a fighter deserves the right to hang up his gloves without everybody jumping all over him to come back,” Goldman said.

“So few fighters retire at the right time.”

Not pretty but effective: Dallas running back Emmitt Smith can break the all-time NFL rushing record this weekend against Seattle. ESPN columnist Eric Neel thinks Smith should be appreciated for more than longevity.

“Maybe kids don’t imitate him on playgrounds and fans don’t talk about his signature moves, but ... there’s a kind of heart-of-the-matter poetry about Smith.

“If you watch him closely, he lets you see how the game hinges on hints and hesitations, on leanings and reaches, and on the razor-thin difference between a blow that comes straight on and one that glances off a hip or shoulder pad.”

Looking back: On this day in 1994, Atlanta’s Greg Maddux became the first pitcher to win three straight Cy Young awards.

Trivia answer: Toronto won the 1992 World Series, four games to two, over Atlanta.

And finally: From Tennessee women’s basketball Coach Pat Summitt: “So many people get their identity through sports, and we have to remember that’s what they do and not what they are.”