Auto-racing entrepreneur Rudy Rodriguez is building the first Hispanic-owned, Hispanic-sponsored, Hispanic-driven team in NASCAR history (the WHOLE package here, owner-sponsor-driver, not just owner). Rodriguez originally targeted the 2001 Nascar season for a first run. Instead, HRT Motorsports Inc. will debut at a BGN race at Homestead in a Chevy. HRT, which stands for “Hispanic Race Team,” has allied itself with a veteran Nascar owner, Larry Hedrick, to put its team on the track. Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines has signed on as a secondary sponsor, as has coffee maker Cafe Bustelo. Negotiations continue for a primary sponsor, one that will underwrite most of the team’s major expenses. The driver will be Colombian driver Jaime Guerro( Dallas Business Journal )(originally reported on this on 8-6-1999, see New Teams page )
