This Monday, January 30, 2023, the death of the young Mexican racing driver Federico Gutiérrez Hoppe, 17 years old, was confirmed. The young driver lost his life after crashing his yellow Porsche while traveling on a highway in Valle de Bravo, in the State of Mexico. Nascar Mexico confirmed Fico’s death on its Twitter profile.
According to initial reports, Fico Gutierrez was driving at full speed at the time of impact with another car, where an 80-year-old man and his 65-year-old wife were traveling, and a 41-year-old woman was pinned in the car due to the accident. The medical report detailed that Max, Fico’s brother, was taken by helicopter to a private hospital. In contrast, the 41-year-old woman and the 65-year-old were taken to the General Hospital of Valle de Bravo.
What was the Porsche that Fico drove like?
Fico Gutiérrez was driving, at the time of the accident, a Porsche Boxster valued at 1.5 million pesos, in yellow or gold, convertible, with sport rims and racing seats with leather details and gray color. The fuel was gasoline, with a displacement (cm3) of 2,497, and a turbo engine.
The gear was a 6-speed manual with rear-wheel drive, which gave it plenty of power to start. Fico’s Porsche Boxster accelerated from 0 to 100 kilometers in 4.6 seconds, with a power (hp) of 350 and a maximum track speed of 285 kilometers per hour.
Motor racing is in mourning
Fico Gutierrez was considered a promising driver, and NASCAR Mexico’s President, Jimmy Morales, remembered the young man as passionate about the sport and “a wonderful human being.” He highlighted that next Wednesday, he will be given a post-mortem Rookie of the Year award he won in 2022.
Gutiérrez achieved his last career victory on December 11, 2022, in the final at the Miguel E. Abed Autodromo in Amozoc, Puebla. His sudden death caused a commotion in the world of motorsports because he was an outstanding driver and was part of Escudería Telmex, which supported the career of Sergio “Checo” Pérez when he was starting.
He participated in several karting championships in Mexico and Spain between 2010 and 2018. At 13, he raced in the Copa Notiauto in 2019, obtaining the first position in two races and fourth place in the Caribe Cup. He was also a teammate of his brother Max Gutierrez (with whom he crashed) in the 24 Hours of Mexico and became the youngest driver to do so. It was in 2022 when his talent opened the doors for him in the NASCAR Challenge, where he was crowned Rookie of the Year.
The remains of Federico Gutiérrez Hoppe will be mourned this January 30 starting at noon, at J. García López Casa Pedregal, located at 140 San Jerónimo Ave., Jardines del Pedregal and at 5:00 p.m. a mass will be celebrated in his memory, where he will be accompanied by friends and family.