Suárez Rolls to 31st-Place Finish at Phoenix - Speedway Digest

Race Winner: Chase Elliott of Hendrick Motorsports (Chevrolet)

Stage 1 Winner: Joey Logano of Team Penske (Ford)

Stage 2 Winner: Brad Keselowski of Team Penske (Ford)

Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-75):

● Started 30th, finished 31st.

● Daniel Suárez and his Peacock Toyota Camry held position through the first 30 laps before the competition caution flag flew. He reported being a little free on corner entry, “but that’s OK,” but that he needed help with grip on corner exit. He pitted for tires, fuel, right-side and left-rear air pressure adjustments, and tape added to the grille. He restarted 28th when the race went back to green on lap 36.

● Shortly after the restart, Suárez reported feeling the right-front wheel was loose. He pitted on lap 43 for right-side tires and resumed 35th, one lap down.

● Suárez picked up four positions but fell a second lap down just before the end of the stage. The team opted to stay on track during the break so the Peacock Toyota could begin the second stage in the Lucky Dog position and just one lap down.

Stage 2 Recap (Laps 76-190):

● Started 31st, finished 31st.

● Suárez was still running 31st on lap 116 but no longer in the Lucky Dog position when the team called him to the pits under green for tires, fuel, tape added to the grille and air pressure adjustments. He rejoined the race in 35th and three laps down with a majority of the field ahead yet to pit.

● The caution flag flew for an incident in turn two with Suárez running 31st and just having gone three laps down. He stayed on track to take the wave-around. He restarted 30th when the race went back to green on lap 167.

● Suárez finished the stage in the same 31st position, three laps down but racing for the Lucky Dog position. He pitted during the break for tires, fuel, left-side and right-rear air pressure adjustments and more tape added to the grille.

Final Stage Recap (Laps 191-312):

● Started 30th, finished 27th.

● Suárez made his scheduled stop for the stage on lap 279 while running 30th. He took four tires, fuel, and tape was removed from the grille. He resumed in the same position and crossed the finish line 31st when the checkered flag flew 33 laps later.

Race Notes:

● Chase Elliott won the Season Finale 500k to score his 11th career NASCAR Cup Series victory, his fifth of the season and his first at Phoenix. His margin of victory over second-place Brad Keselowski was 2.740 seconds.

● Elliott earned the NASCAR Cup Series championship at Phoenix by virtue of his win. He is the 34th different driver to win the series title.

● There were four caution periods for a total of 27 laps.

● Only 12 of the 39 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.

Next Up:

The 2021 season kicks off with the 63rd running of the Daytona 500 on Sunday, Feb. 14 with live coverage from FOX and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

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