Suarez Praises Spire’s Speed, “Probably the Fastest Cars I Have Had In My Career”

By Cole Cusumano

Not only has 2026 been one of the most successful seasons of Daniel Suarez’s NASCAR Cup Series career, it’s also been one of the best years of his life. From capturing his first crown-jewel to assuming a new role as a full-time father, a fresh start with Spire Motorsports seems to be exactly what was needed for the racer from Monterrey, Mexico.

Year 10 at NASCAR’s top level brought much change for Suarez, who parted ways with Trackhouse Racing following an impressive five-year tenure. Despite breaking through for the first two wins of his career, coupled with his first postseason appearances, there seemed to be a mutual understanding that the relationship had run its course.

After bottoming out and finishing the 2025 season ranked 29th in the standings, Suarez has proven that a change in scenery with the quickly ascending Spire Motorsports was the right decision.

Highlighted by winning the prestigious Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway, Suarez’s 2026 campaign is a contender for one of his best. In addition to qualifying for “The Chase,” this has statistically been his most consistent season, where he’s compiled a career-best 15.1 average finish with two races remaining.

While closing in on a decade worth of experience in Cup helps, Suarez also believes Spire has supplied him with the best equipment he’s ever competed in.

‘I think it’s a combination of me already being smart and gaining experience, but also having probably the fastest cars I have had in my career this year,” Suarez told SpeedFreaks. “We have had cars competitive enough to run up front, but we know there are some teams out there that have been even better. We still have work to do, but with that being said – in my career, I have had some of the best cars in the last several years (with Spire).

This claim shouldn’t be taken lightly, as Suarez has established himself as one of the premier journeymen in NASCAR. Prior to his five years with Trackhouse, the Mexico-born racer had brief stints with the severely underfunded Gaunt Brothers Racing and championship-winning team Stewart-Haas Racing.

What makes Suarez’s praise for Spire even more fascinating is the fact he began his Cup career driving for industry powerhouse Joe Gibbs Racing. After being held winless with just 21 top 10s and a highest ranking of 20th in the standings at the conclusion of his rookie year, his opportunity with the Toyota titan lasted only two seasons.

While the former driver of the No. 19 did technically compete in top-tier equipment, Suarez was as green as a rookie could get, making his Cup debut in his first full-time campaign.

“I feel like I was kind of thrown into the war without having the whole foundation of preparation,” Suarez said. “Sometimes you just don’t know what you don’t know and we had to learn the hard way. Unfortunately, things just didn’t work out the way we were hoping for.

“In my Gibbs times, I just needed a different level of preparation with people around me to be able to be successful. With Trackhouse, I feel like we did a good job in the beginning, but then things didn’t work out speed-wise and we were just not good enough the last couple years.

“We just have to continue to work. Obviously Spire Motorsports has been growing a lot, and it’s been investing a lot in people and equipment and it’s showing in the speed.”

The 34-year-old clearly made the right call, jumping ship to Spire in a time where the organization has taken tremendous strides over the past few seasons to establish a new identity and become a weekly contender.

In 2024, Spire signed Carson Hocevar to a full-time ride, and now the hot-shot has broken out as one of NASCAR’s best personalities and most tenacious talents in the garage. Last year, they brought in veteran and multi-race winner Michael McDowell to elevate this once middle-of-the-pack team, like he’d done in his previous tenure with Front Row Motorsports.

When Suarez joined Spire at the beginning of the 2026 season, he brought with him a near perfect blend of McDowell’s veteran prowess and Hocevar’s competitive fire. The combination of these three drivers sparked a career-year for the organization in which it could be considered the next-best Chevrolet team to Hendrick Motorsports.

After scoring just one win in the seven years prior, Spire found victory lane twice this season between Suarez and Hocevar. On top of that, both drivers qualified for The Chase, making this the first time the organization made the postseason.

Staying true to his season-long trend, Suarez has been consistent in The Chase, finishing top-15 in five-of-eight starts. Sitting 14th in the standings and 240 points back with two races remaining, his championship hopes may be over, but he’ll have a chance to match or exceed his career-best ranking of 10th.

The future is bright for Suarez, who was blessed with life-changing news both on and off the track in the past month.

On October 13, Suarez got some short-term reassurance of his racing future in the form of a one-year extension with Spire. Exactly three weeks prior, he and wife Julia Piquet welcomed their first child Otto into the world.

While Suarez hopes to finish the season strong and carry momentum into the offseason, he is eager to embrace full-time fatherhood and spend time with his family, which could translate into added motivation in 2027.

“ I’m really looking forward to continuing to maximize our potential and getting better as a team,” Suarez said. “I believe that there’s still a lot of room for improvement. I know we’re a good team, but we want to be a great team. In the offseason, I think the main thing is going to be to learn how to be a dad, and hopefully I can do my best with that.”