Valeria Aranda and Alexandra Mohnhaupt secure playoff spots after strong performances at Super Óvalo Potosino

Valeria Aranda fought back from early incidents to finish fourth, while rookie Alexandra Mohnhaupt claimed eighth, as both drivers advanced to the Mexico Trucks Series playoff rounds after a dramatic round at San Luis Potosí.

Photo credits: Mexico Trucks Series

The eleventh round of the Trucks Mexico Series saw both Valeria Aranda and Alexandra Mohnhaupt battling at the front and ultimately securing their spots in the upcoming playoff rounds at the end of the regular season.

At Super Óvalo Potosino, Aranda recovered from a couple of incidents and fought with great determination throughout the race to finish fourth, while Mohnhaupt continued to impress as one of the top rookies in the series, adding another top-ten result to her tally.

Heading into the final round of the regular season, Valeria Aranda sat third in the championship standings, while Alexandra Mohnhaupt was eighth overall and the top rookie.

Gerardo Rodríguez started from pole, with Aranda lining up sixth, Mohnhaupt in P12, and young rookie Sol Díaz in P17 at the San Luis Potosí oval.

When the green flag waved, contact among the front-row starters allowed Rodríguez to retain the lead ahead of Mateo Girón, while Aranda immediately gained a position to move into fifth. Mohnhaupt slotted into tenth.

Aranda kept climbing and, by lap six, was already running in the top three, joining the fight for the lead as Rodríguez and Girón battled side by side. On lap nine, Sebastián Rodríguez spun into the wall, bringing out the first caution. Meanwhile, Díaz had moved up to P13.

Aranda restarted from third on the inside line, but soon after the green flag waved again, she was hit by Rafael Maggio and spun around, triggering another caution. Mohnhaupt held her ground in ninth, just ahead of a very impressive Díaz in tenth. Despite light contact with the inside wall, Aranda managed to rejoin the race in 15th.

At the lap-23 restart, Mohnhaupt moved to the inside line and advanced to eighth, while Díaz remained in the thick of the midfield battles. Running the outside lane, Aranda continued her recovery, climbing to 12th and then back into the top ten by lap 34. As the field settled into single-file racing, Aranda passed Mohnhaupt. The first stage ended with Mateo Girón taking the stage win, Aranda ninth, Mohnhaupt tenth, and Díaz a solid 13th after a consistent drive.

Photo credits: Mexico Trucks Series

At the restart following the stage caution, Aranda made the most of the outside line to move into fourth, while Mohnhaupt had to recover from further down the order. Aranda continued her charge and climbed to second, chasing down Gerardo Rodríguez, who held a three-second lead. Girón, however, closed in and, after slight contact, managed to reclaim second place.

With the field running very close lap times, Mohnhaupt overtook Arenas and Elizondo to move up to P12 by lap 67, with Díaz three seconds ahead in P11, both setting similar lap times. A yellow flag was brought out when Ricardo Elizondo spun, and at the next restart, the action was short-lived as Díaz—running strongly just outside the top ten—spun and eventually pitted, bringing out another caution on lap 80.

When the race resumed, Aranda maintained her position among the front-runners, as Rodríguez and Girón continued their intense duel for the lead with Espinosa close behind. Aranda ran patiently in fourth, waiting for an opportunity. Mohnhaupt climbed back into the top ten, running smartly in eighth.

After her pit stop under caution, Díaz rejoined in 12th as the race entered its final ten laps.

Following several laps of side-by-side battling for the lead, the lapped truck of Edwin Arenas triggered a multi-truck crash involving Girón and Rodríguez. Espinosa dived to avoid, while both Cruz and Aranda were caught in the incident. Despite heavy bodywork damage, Aranda was able to continue.

Mohnhaupt avoided the chaos and moved up to eighth as the race went into overtime.

At the final restart, Aranda went for the inside line and tried to fight her way into second, but multiple contacts in the closing lap decided the outcome: Mateo Girón took the win and secured the regular-season points lead, ahead of Espinosa in second. Aranda crossed the line in fourth after a hard-fought race, following intense side-by-side action with Rodríguez to the chequered flag.

Mohnhaupt secured valuable points with eighth place, clinching the comodín slot — awarded to the best placed driver in this race outside the top six in the standings — while Sol Díaz completed the top ten after a strong performance despite her earlier spin.

With this result, Valeria Aranda, third in the standings, and Alexandra Mohnhaupt both advance to the Trucks Mexico Series playoffs.