June 13, 2022 | By Lee Spencer

Daniel Suarez, Trackhouse Racing found perfect synergy in milestone Cup victory

Daniel Suarez’s first Cup victory is a watershed moment for NASCAR.

When NASCAR introduced the Drive for Diversity program in 2004 as a vehicle to attract minorities and women to the sport, Danny Suarez was 12 and two years into his karting career. 

Eighteen seasons later, NASCAR finally has its first Mexican winner in the Cup Series. But it took a group effort for the Monterrey racer to realize his dream at Sonoma Raceway on Sunday.

Suarez quickly rose through the racing ranks, but he was far from an overnight success. That didn’t stop the Monterrey driver from putting in the work to succeed. By 2011, Suarez was already traveling back and forth from the NASCAR Mexico Series to the K&N Pro Series East. Support from Carlos Slim and Telcel was critical to getting his career off the ground. Toyota and Rev Racing stepped up to aid his journey in 2013—the same year Suarez was added to the Drive for Diversity Program.

Aligning with Joe Gibbs Racing in 2014 was a game-changer for the affable driver. Toyota Racing also arranged for seat time in the truck series with Kyle Busch Motorsports and select ARCA starts with Venturini Motorsports. 

Suarez excelled in the Xfinity Series. In 2015, his first full season on the tour, he finished fifth in the standings. The following year, Suarez won the NXS title.

Suarez graduated to the Cup Series with JGR in 2017, replacing Carl Edwards after the latter's sudden departure. With Denny Hamlin and two champions—Kyle Busch and Matt Kenseth—for teammates, the comparisons were stark. Suarez’s best result as a rookie was third at Watkins Glen, his sole top-five finish. He finished 20th in the standings and showed little progress in his second season. What Suarez lacked in speed, he over-compensated with aggression. When Toyota needed a seat for Martin Truex Jr. after Furniture Row Racing folded at the end of 2018, Suarez was the odd man out. 
Suarez rebounded with a Stewart-Haas Racing ride for the 2019 season. Under the direction of crew chief Billy Scott, Suarez enjoyed his best season to date with four top fives,11 top 10s, one pole and 166 laps led. He missed the playoffs by one spot and was replaced by Cole Custer at season's end. 

Although he remained in the Cup Series in 2020, Suarez appeared to be spinning his wheels with Gaunt Brothers Racing. He missed the Daytona 500 and scored just three top-20 finishes. Suarez was spiraling down the road of no return when he was rescued by Justin Marks for Trackhouse Racing’s maiden voyage. 

Suarez's up-on-the-wheel approach to racing didn’t faze Marks in the least. The former driver embraced Suarez’s raw talent and his hunger. Marks had a diamond-in-the-rough he could massage into a winner. He just needed to give Suarez the resources to thrive.

“Daniel checked a lot of boxes for us right away,” Marks said. “He's an experienced Cup driver. He is a winner. When he's been in positions to win, he's won with his Xfinity championship and Truck.

“He had a chip on his shoulder. He wanted to prove to the world he belonged in the Cup Series. 2020 was a difficult year for him. I knew he had a tremendous amount of potential, that he was a winner at this level. I told him from day one, ‘This is your team, this 99 team is your team. You come to me and tell me anything and everything that you need. We're going to put that behind you.’”

Marks was a man of his word. His support for Suarez was unwavering. While it was likely frustrating for Suarez to watch new teammate Ross Chastain come to Trackhouse and enjoy immediate success, it also served as a catalyst to push forward. 

“It has cost me a lot to get to this point,” Suarez said. “A lot of people don’t know that, but it has cost me a lot to get to this country—first, 10 years ago—and to get to this point. Fighting. I come from a very humble family. Every step of my life has cost me a lot. 

“I knew that it’s important to remember that if I was able to come all the way here. I wasn’t going to give up.”

Marks saw the introduction of the Next Gen car as his opportunity to not only break into the sport but as a way to change the system. The 41-year-old entrepreneur has provided an environment where Suarez and the entire organization can blossom.

“I believe with this new car it's truly going to be about the people, the people are going to make this car go,” Marks said. “The way they changed the model of the sport a little bit is you have to invest in your people and keep them motivated and put talented people in positions, lift them up, empower them. I just believe that.

“I think we're doing that right now because we have a great culture at Trackhouse.”

Marks hasn’t fully tapped into the potential of his drivers—Suarez, 30, and Ross Chastain, 29. Winning three of the first 16 Cup races in just their second season on the tour is impressive, particularly since Chastain is currently second in the point standings. 

And Marks has just scratched the surface for Trackhouse branding. With the reach of co-owner Armando Christian Pérez (Pitbull) and Suarez's wide appeal, the possibilities are endless. 

“Trackhouse is a race team that anybody and everybody can be a fan of. We've made investments in the minority community with Pitbull's schools, our great CommScope program, our STEM stuff," Marks said. “To me, this is sort of a representation of what America stands for. It's a place you can come with big dreams and you can work hard to achieve those dreams.

"I always say that Daniel is one of one. A Mexican race car driver moving to America, can't speak the language, to be a NASCAR Cup Series winner, that shows the amazing place we live.”

In an effort to be more inclusive, NASCAR has been searching for ways to entice the Hispanic demographic, which has risen to more than 62 million in the U.S.—and nearly 20-percent of the population. With Suarez’s win, Trackhouse provided an organic solution, and they're just getting started.