Daniel Suárez Trackhouse Racing Phoenix Advance

It was snowing and raining and the temperature hovered in the mid-30s when Daniel Suárez showed up for his autograph session at the Freeway Insurance office in Fontana, Calif. on Feb. 25.

Some suggested the appearance be canceled because of weather, especially after NASCAR canceled all Cup Series activity earlier in the day.

Suarez’s Autograph Session in Snowy Fontana

But, the Monterrey, Mexico native insisted he go ahead with the session.

As he drove a Chevrolet Camaro production car identically painted as his race car into the parking lot he saw that more than 300 fans had lined up to meet the NASCAR Cup Series’ only Mexican race winner.

Suárez spent the next two hours and 15 minutes meeting the largely Hispanic fans, signing autographs, sombreros, taking pictures and visiting with everyone who lined up in the cold rain.

“I knew they would show up,” laughed Suárez who has made bringing new fans to NASCAR a priority over his seven full time seasons in the Cup Series.

“They are extremely loyal and it was great to see them. There are more and more Hispanics taking an interest in NASCAR every day. Our crowds at these autograph sessions are getting bigger and bigger. We get them out to the track or to an autograph session and I believe they like what they see and want to keep coming back.”

Freeway Insurance holds an autograph session about a half dozen times a year whenever Suárez is racing its No. 99 paint scheme. He’ll hold another at 3 p.m. Saturday at 6750 W. Olive Ave. in Peoria, Arizona after he qualifies for Sunday’s 500-kilometer race at Phoenix Raceway.

Suárez arrives in Phoenix fourth in points after top-10 finishes in Daytona, Fontana and Las Vegas. He and Alex Bowman are the only two drivers to score top-10s in each of the season’s three races.

Cup Series teams will join in an extended practice Friday to prepare for the debut of a new aerodynamic rules package aimed to enhance the racing product at short ovals and road courses.

The changes include a two-inch rear spoiler (a reduction from the current four-inch blade on the rear deck lid) in addition to several tweaks underneath the car. Those include the removal of three diffuser strakes, engine panel strakes and trimming the diffuser’s outer fencing. All changes were run together during the second day of a January test at Phoenix.

Fox will broadcast Sunday’s race at 3:30 p.m. ET.

Daniel Suárez, Driver of the No. 99 Freeway Insurance Chevrolet

How is your season so far?

“We are off to a good start. We have had rocket ships at most of the races. You can always be better, but Trackhouse Racing is giving us great equipment and our pit stops have been really fast this season.”

Three top-10s in three races. Is a top-10 the expectation in each race now?

“No. It’s to win.”

How helpful will be Friday’s practice in Phoenix?

“It will be helpful for everyone as we try to get used to the new low downforce package and try to get into a rhythm. I don’t really have an answer on what is going to happen. It’s going to be different but we won’t know until Friday.”

How do you feel the response has been to you as far as attracting your fellow Hispanics into the sport? But how much do you think you have helped being at the Cup level?

“You know, it helps a lot. I’ve been doing this already for several years. I have noticed that every year, with a lot of work from myself, NASCAR, my sponsors, the racetracks, the Daniel’s Amigos, every year we get better, every year we have a bigger community on the track. 

“But something I learned is that consistent work is paying off, is getting better. But success on track just brings it to a whole different level. At the end of the day you are going to be way more attached to something if you know that your guy and your person that is just like you – in my case obviously Hispanic – is being successful. In my opinion, winning races, being in the Playoffs, contending almost every weekend, that played a huge role. 

“And in my opinion, 2022 has been the biggest step I have seen in my racing career in Cup when it comes to the Hispanic community. So it’s amazing. I feel like we are in a huge momentum right now. Obviously 2023 we’re expecting to be an even more successful season. 

“I think myself, NASCAR, Coca-Cola, Freeway Insurance and all the people that helped me put these things together, we are definitely moving the needle.”

Suárez Notes

• Suárez, 31, became the first driver from Mexico (Monterrey) to win in the NASCAR Cup Series on June 12, 2022 at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway.
• He became the fifth different driver all-time not from the United States to win a NASCAR Cup Series race; joining Marcos Ambrose (Australia), Juan Pablo Montoya (Colombia) Earl Ross (Canada) and Mario Andretti (Italy).
• Suárez drives for the third-year team Trackhouse Racing – a team owned by former racer Justin Marks and partner Pitbull.
• Trackhouse Racing won three races in 2022 and placed both Suárez and teammate Ross Chastain in the 2022 playoffs. Suárez finished a career-best 10th in points.
• Suárez, came to America to race. He did not speak English when he arrived in Buffalo, New York.
• He is the only Spanish-speaking driver in the NASCAR Cup Series.
• Suárez became the first Latin American, as well as the first NASCAR Drive for Diversity graduate, to win a NASCAR national series title when he won the 2016 Xfinity Series championship.
• In 2016, he became the first Mexican driver to win in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, claiming three victories at Michigan, Dover and the championship finale at Homestead-Miami.
• He was the 2015 NASCAR Xfinity Series Sunoco Rookie of the Year – the first Mexican driver to win the award.
• In 2013, Suárez finished third in the ARCA Menards Series East final championship standings, the highest finish for an international driver in series history.
• Suárez and fiancé Julia Piquet were engaged in November 2022.
• Suárez received the National Series Driver Award during the NASCAR Diversity Awards in Los Angeles in February.
• Suárez is a fan of the Mexican Soccer team Tigres UANL – he grew up playing soccer.

Career Statistics

2023 Standings

Suárez Earns National Series Driver Award

NASCAR hosted the 15th annual NASCAR Drive for Diversity Awards in Los Angeles on Feb. 2 to celebrate diversity and honor inclusion advocates and trailblazers throughout the sport. 

Daniel Suárez joined nine individuals and organizations whose efforts are making a difference both on and off the race track in receiving awards.

Suárez received the National Series Driver Award.

In 2022, Daniel Suárez made history as the first Mexican-born driver to win a NASCAR Cup Series race. A graduate of the NASCAR Drive for Diversity Program, Suárez continues to be both an ambassador for the sport, the Mexican American and broader Hispanic community. He has carried the Daniel’s Amigos campaign with him for several years, winning support for the initiative at each stop.

“We continue to make significant progress in increasing diversity and inclusion across our sport, a collective effort made possible thanks to those receiving awards today,” said NASCAR President Steve Phelps. “Their contributions are helping drive our sport forward, and these awards celebrate the passion and commitment of leaders who are bolstering our efforts to build a more inclusive NASCAR culture.”

Trackhouse Racing won the Team Award in 2021.