Mexico native Daniel Suarez wins first NASCAR race in his home country since 2008
The NASCAR Xfinity Series' return to Mexico City ended with Daniel Suarez in victory lane.
The Mexico native went from last to first over the course of the 65-lap race to get the win in his home country. It was the first Xfinity Series race at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez since 2008.
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Suarez got the lead with a bit of good fortune. As he raced three-wide for the lead with Connor Zilisch and Ty Gibbs after a restart in the final stage, Zilisch spun on the exit of Turn 1. Gibbs and Carson Kvapil then collided in the ensuing corners and Suarez took over the lead ahead of the caution flag for the ridiculous crashing sequence.
From there, Suarez held onto the lead from Tanner Gray and Austin Hill. Though there was a dicey moment with less than five laps to go. Gray and Suarez made contact entering Turns 2 and 3 and Suarez took to the infield grass to cut the corner and keep the lead. NASCAR judged that Suarez had been forced off the track and didn't penalize him even though he gained an advantage by not staying on the track.
Suarez had to start last after he crashed in qualifying. He nosed his JR Motorsports car into the wall in Turn 11 after he locked the brakes. The damage from the crash forced him into driving a backup car that wasn't even fully painted. And since he had to get a new car, he had to start last.
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Suarez, 33, became the first Mexican driver to win a NASCAR national series title when he won the 2016 Xfinity Series title. That ended up being his last full-time season in the second-tier series after Carl Edwards abruptly retired from the Cup Series and Joe Gibbs Racing had an opening for its No. 19 car.
Suarez's transition to the Cup Series was rough. He had just four top-five finishes in his first two seasons and didn't finish higher than 20th in the points standings. JGR dropped him in favor of Martin Truex Jr. ahead of the 2019 season and Suarez went to Stewart-Haas Racing for a season before he stayed afloat in the Cup Series with Gaunt Brothers Racing in 2020.
After that miserable 2020 season, Suarez signed up with Trackhouse Racing and has scored the only two Cup Series wins of his career over the past four seasons. He won at Sonoma in 2022 and then scored a win in a three-wide finish at Atlanta in 2024.
However, Suarez has struggled mightily this season. And that's led to questions about his future. He enters Sunday's Cup race — the first in Mexico — in 28th in the points standings. He's also in a contract year with Zilisch waiting in the wings at Trackhouse.
Does Saturday's win change things for Suarez? Who knows. It certainly can't hurt. And it also gives NASCAR a massive boost as it hosts its first Cup race in his home country.
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