FONTANA, Calif.: Daniel Suarez did everything he could to try and send Trackhouse Racing into Victory Lane in Saturday afternoon’s Wise Power 400 at Auto Club (Calif.) Speedway, but the 2016 Xfinity Series champion came three positions short of scoring his first career NASCAR Cup Series victory.
On a restart with four laps to go, Suarez started on the bottom lane alongside Larson but a relentless effort by Suarez kept him, Larson and Joey Logano all challenging for the lead.
Suarez briefly took command of the race but found himself under constant attack from Larson and new challengers Austin Dillon and Erik Jones with the races’ final four miles remaining.
Suarez’s No. 99 Freeway Insurance Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 could sniff the lead with two laps to go, but his car got tight coming back to the white flag opening the door for Dillon and Jones to pass.
Tucked in fourth, Suarez held off a hard-charging Logano to claim his first top-five finish since finishing fourth at the Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway Dirt in March of 2021.
“We’re going to win a few races very soon here,” said Suarez after the race. “I just can’t thank everyone enough in my team. We had a fast car, but we went through a lot of adversity.
“We had a few issues. We hit the wall once. We had an issue with a diffuser. My pit crew, those guys are legends; it’s unbelievable. It’s the (best) pit crew I’ve ever had, and it’s a lot of fun to race like that. Freeway Insurance, Chevrolet, everyone that helps Trackhouse out, to be able to be here and perform this way.”
Parity was the hot topic for the Cup Series following the second race of the year and it’s still a relatively new Gen7 race car. With Daytona in the rear-view mirrors, the teams are off to experience the bread and butter of the Cup Series schedule with a diverse series of tracks that make up the core of the season, including speedways, intermediate tracks and short tracks.
And while the weekend started off with some nervousness following a rash of spins and crashes in practice and qualifying, the race delivered shaking up the running order, creating chaos and vaulting fresh faces like Suarez and Trackhouse Racing in the spotlight.
Of course, many would be elated with a top-five finish so early into a new Cup Series season but for Suarez the effort was almost equally as horrid – knowing how much he wants to win not only for himself but for his team owned by Justin Marks and music icon Pitbull.
“I’m happy and I’m horror at the same time,” added Suarez. “I can tell you that I’m going to work very, very hard to go to Victory Lane very, very soon here.”
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01
