Daniel Suarez’s “Efficient” Stats Affirms His NASCAR Spot Amidst Questionable Trackhouse Racing Future

At the end of last season, Daniel Suarez’s days looked numbered in the NASCAR Cup Series. The Mexican-born driver failed to win a single race in 2023 and it seemed like Trackhouse Racing would let him go if he did not perform in 2024. Well, it’s safe to say that the former Xfinity Series champion is not going anywhere for the time being. Not only did he win in Atlanta, but he was one of the most efficient racers in the Pennzoil 400 on Sunday.

The 32-year-old became a part of NASCAR folklore earlier this season when he won the 3-wide photo finish at the Atlanta Motor Speedway against two Cup Series champions. It sealed his place in the last 16 quite early on, and the Trackhouse Racing star would breathe easy now that the immediate goal has been achieved.

Daniel Suarez was perhaps the best passer at Las Vegas

Going into the Cup Series race at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday, the driver of the #99 was a highly confident man coming off of such an impressive victory. Daniel Suarez started the race from P16 and finished just outside of the top 10 in P11. An impressive performance from a man who has been on an upward trajectory since winning the NASCAR Mexico race at the LA Memorial Coliseum before the season got underway.

The Mexican-born racer was the most effective passer in Sin City. A statistic posted on X showed that among the drivers in the passing range of 0.4 seconds, Suarez completed the highest percentage of passes in the Pennzoil 400 with 57.7%. His Trackhouse Racing teammate Ross Chastain sat in a close second place after making 46.8% of passes from passing positions.

After the disappointment of last season, many do not particularly take the former Joe Gibbs Racing star too seriously. Nevertheless, it is important to note that Suarez is a champion in NASCAR as he won the Xfinity Series in 2016 with 3 race wins. That year, he won a race in the regular season to make it into the playoffs. It will be interesting to see if the 32-year-old can replicate that feat in the Cup Series this year.

What a story it would be. Daniel Suarez winless in 2023 becomes the champion 2024. But that’s easier said than done and the Mexican race car driver knows that.

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Despite playoff confirmation, the Trackhouse star in no mood to take it easy

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Winning one race in the regular season and taking it easy is not how champions are made, and that’s not what Daniel Suarez has in mind either. In a recent media interaction, he said that he wanted to win more races before the playoffs began so that he could take that momentum into the business end of the competition.

“We have a long way [to go] before the playoffs. In my mind, I don’t want to be one of those drivers who win one race to get into the playoffs and that’s it. I don’t want to be part of that. The goal here is to do more than that, to be strong in the regular season championship,” he said as per RACER.

“I know that to be able to contend for the championship, you have to win three or more races and that’s the goal. The goal is to build a strong season where we have stage points, where we have wins, so that when we get into the playoffs, it’s not just, ‘Oh, we made the playoffs,’ but in a strong fashion. That’s the goal and we’re working hard, everyone at Trackhouse Racing, to be able to deliver that.”

It will be interesting to see the former Xfinity Series champion find his form at the highest level of the sport and if he competes for the championship. How do you think Daniel Suarez will perform in 2024? Let us know your thoughts.

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