BRISTOL, Tenn: Daniel Suárez and Trackhouse Racing enjoyed a banner afternoon at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway on the dirt – a strong performance that brought the new NASCAR Cup Series team their first top-five finish in just their seventh race together in the postponed Food City Dirt Race.
Suárez entered Monday with hardly any experience on dirt, but a solid top-20 outing in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series with Young’s Motorsports earlier in the day gave the Monterrey, Mexico native confidence and an opportunity to rebound for his Justin Marks and Pitbull-owned team.
The 29-year-old started the race 18th but aggressively moved forward and by the end of Stage 1 had worked his No. 99 Camping World Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE to fourth and showcased that despite his inexperience with the dirt, his Travis Mack-led team brought a car capable of not only challenging for a top-five – but the actual race win.
In Stage 2, Suárez’s car was nearly flawless and was able to track down and pass race dominator Martin Truex Jr. on Lap 135 and maintain the pace for a career-high 58 laps and finished Stage 2 second behind Joey Logano who took the lead from the Trackhouse team at Lap 193.
With one more opportunity on pit road, the team was hoping the last stop would be the best.
Restarting second, Suárez’s car did not fire off like it had earlier in the race and with the track changing as well, he vowed not to go down without a fight, Suarez kept his presence at the front of the field battling contenders Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr.
Over the final 50 laps of the race, Suarez had hoped for at least one more caution to put himself back on the bumpers of the front row for one more shot at his first Cup Series triumph.
That opportunity came at Lap 246 when Mike Marlar spun on the frontstretch triggering a NASCAR overtime finish.
Unlike earlier in the race, NASCAR abruptly changed the restarts to single file, which proved to be costly for some of the competitors on the restart and when third place runner Truex Jr. suffered a flat tire entering Turn 1 which sent the field scrambling and allowing Suarez to sneak by on the bottom and charge to the checkered flag.
Suárez finished fourth, behind Hamlin, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and race winner Logano.
“To be honest, I had no idea what I was doing. But we’re having fun,” said Suárez after the race. “Everyone at Trackhouse Racing did an amazing job. This is the second week in a row that we’ve had very fast race cars capable of running in the top-five, top-10.
“I couldn’t be more proud of all these guys (like) Justin Marks, Ty Norris, and everyone that helps in this program; Camping World, Chevy, CommScope,” he continued. “Everyone has been a huge support of myself. It just feels so good to be back. It’s been a little bit difficult the last year, and it feels so good to be able to race with these guys and to have some fun up front. Hopefully, our time will come soon.”
Marks continues to praise his team for not only their passion but performance.
“Today was just a great day for the Trackhouse team,” Marks told CATCHFENCE.com. “It’s been important all along for me to find talented, hungry people and give them an opportunity. I’m so proud of the passion every single member of this team has and it showed with our performance today at Bristol. Daniel did a world-class job and while we lost the handle a bit on the car right at the end, we’re all so motivated and driven to keep working hard and show that we can fly very high in the NASCAR Cup Series.”
Suarez admitted that he continued to adapt to conditions as the race went on Monday, especially considering his first laps on dirt occurred less than a week ago.
“Honestly, I am just very, very proud of my team that they brought a very fast car, and I was able to learn as I went,” Suarez continued.
“It was a challenge. Last probably five days ago was my first time ever on a dirt car. It was a lot of fun. I really enjoy a lot. I enjoy a lot, as well, the entire weekend.
“Overall, I felt that we’re very close. That always bring a smile to my face. But it wasn’t close enough. So, we have to keep working.”
In the closing laps of the race, Bristol Motor Speedway officially announced the return of the dirt race in 2022, something Suarez is already looking forward too.
“Now I’m excited actually that we’re going to come back next year with another shot to race and compete for the win in Bristol on dirt,” he said.
The finish was Suárez’s first top-five since finishing third at Texas Motor Speedway in Nov. 19 driving for Stewart-Haas Racing.
