October 8, 2020 | By Lee Spencer

Daniel Suarez partners with Justin Marks for new NASCAR opportunity

Yes, Daniel Suarez will return to the NASCAR Cup Series next season with a new enterprise fronted by former racer and founder of Trackhouse Entertainment Group Justin Marks.

Suarez will pilot the No. 99 Trackhouse Chevrolet Camaro under a technical alliance with Richard Childress Racing which will offer ECR power and engineering to the upstart team. The 28-year-old native of Monterrey, Mexico, and 2016 Xfinity Series champion is in his fourth full season on NASCAR's top tour. In 138 starts, Suarez has posted five podiums, eight top fives, 32 top 10s and two poles.

More importantly, he believes in Marks' vision.

"I see in Trackhouse a great opportunity for me with a very strong group of people that share the same vision, commitment and goals that I have," Suárez said. "Justin has been involved in the racing world for over 20 years and understands the ins and outs of the sport both as a driver and from the business side.

“I have learned a lot in the last few years and have been very fortunate to be a part of very good organizations. I have learned that this sport is about people, and I know we are going to work very hard to put together a talented team. Furthermore, getting the support from a strong manufacturer like Chevrolet will be a key to our success. My goal is simple, I want to win races.”

Marks said his competitive nature led him to undertake this latest challenge. He brings a racer’s mentality to the team along with a business and philanthropic background. Marks saw the roll-out of the Next Gen car as the perfect opportunity to pursue his desire of becoming a team owner.

The 39-year-old adventurer honed his racing skills in sports cars, ran two full seasons in the ARCA Menards Series then dabble in trucks, Xfinity and Cup—bringing home trophies from Mid-Ohio in Chip Ganassi Racing’s NXS ride in 2016 and finishing second to Chase Briscoe in the inaugural Roval race two years later.

"The formation of a top-level NASCAR Cup Series team has been a dream of mine for a long time," Marks said. "A lot of hard work has transpired to get us to this point and I don’t think we could’ve ended up with better partners in RCR and Chevrolet, and with a more passionate and committed driver than Daniel Suárez.

“Daniel’s drive and hunger to get to the top of this sport is palpable every time I am in his presence. We are building a team of winners and Daniel has delivered just about every time he’s sat in race-winning equipment.  It’s my job now to put a car underneath him that will carry him to the highest echelon of the sport.”

Marks has selected Ty Norris, former Executive Vice President and GM of both Dale Earnhardt Inc. and Michael Waltrip Racing, to oversee the operation. The newly named President of Racing Operations most recently worked for Spire Motorsports.

Although sponsors will be named at a later date, a principal theme in Marks’ motorsports agenda is using NASCAR as a platform for STEM—Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics—programs particularly directed to youngsters in minority communities. Marks is intents on expediting the Trackhouse Racing Team initiative through the Marks Family Foundation.

"I believe deeply in the direction NASCAR’s executive group is taking the sport," Marks said. "There is a disruptive and courageous vision for the future taking place that is displayed by the incredible 2021 racing schedule and new ways of looking at a sustainable economic model culminating in the debut of the 2022 Next Gen car that, in my opinion, will lay the groundwork for a dramatic value proposition for future owners, media partners, stakeholders, and sponsors for decades to come.

“Everything Trackhouse will be doing in 2021 from a business development standpoint will be in the context of positioning ourselves to win races and championships as NASCAR embarks on a new chapter in 2022 and beyond."