Up in the lake country of New Hampshire, Daniel Suarez started the weekend with a car that was 11th fastest, 15th fastest, and 7th fastest in the three Cup practice sessions. He ran similar speeds in qualifying, grabbing the 12th best time in the first round, easily advancing. In the second round, he could do no better than 15th and failed to continue on to the third and final round. But once qualifying was over, one of the cars ahead of him had its time disallowed, so Daniel ended up starting the race in the 14th spot.
Once the race got underway, he battled a loose-handling car. Gradually he fell back until he finished the first stage in 21st on lap 75. Since
he had pitted for 4 tires during a caution just 8 laps before the stage
break, he stayed out and restarted 13th on lap 83. Within 4 laps, he
cracked the top ten in 9th place. During the rest of stage 2, he ran
as far forward as 8th place and as far back as 13th. That is where he
was running when stage 2 ended on lap 150.
During the stage break, a slow pit stop saw him coming off pit road in 21st. Over the next 60 laps, he made minor gains, advancing to 17th place. Green-flag pit stops covered the next 30 laps, and as they cycled through, Daniel found himself running in 10th place. He fell back 2 spots during the next 12 laps. Following a caution on lap 261, the 19 ARRIS Toyota pitted, then restarted in 11th place.
And that was the last time Daniel would run outside the top ten. Little by little, he picked up one position after another. When the checkered flag flew, he crossed the finish line in 6th place, tying his best finish in the Cup series. Oh so close to a top five!!
He earned 31 points this race, bringing
his season
total up to 404 points. He maintained his 18th spot in the drivers'
standings. He finished 33 spots ahead of Erik Jones, earning 30 more points than his closest opponent, closing the gap to only 23 points. He finished 10 positions ahead
of Ty Dillon, gaining 10 points on him, now putting him 82 points
ahead.
As I suspected, Daniel's top-notch performance allowed him to regain the lead in the separate rookie standings. This is what they look like now:
- Daniel Suarez -- 198
- Erik Jones -- 194
-
Ty Dillon -- 168
- Corey LaJoie -- 133
- Gray Gaulding -- 117
Following the race, it was discovered that Daniel's car had one unsecured lug nut. Crew chief Scott Graves was fined $10,000 for the infraction. No point penalty.
When
the 19 team arrived in Kentucky, they unloaded an Arris Camry that
posted the 14th and 18th fastest times during practices. During
qualifying, he easily moved out of the first round with the 16th fastest
lap time. The second round was better for Daniel, with a 9th place
time. Then lightning rolled in, cancelled the rest of qualifying, and
the results from round 2 set the starting grid for the race.
So
as the race got underway, Daniel rolled off 9th. Driving up front with
the big boys, he did himself proud. During the first ten laps, he
gained 3 positions, advancing up to 6th place. During the competition
caution on lap 30, he pitted for only 2 tires, allowing him to maintain
6th place for the restart.
But
starting in the outside lane proved to be challenging. The lack of
grip contributed to Daniel sliding all the way back to 20th place within
4 laps. And then 25 laps later, he tapped the wall in turn 4. He was
struggling with a car that was tight in the center, with the back out of
control. He finished stage 1 in 19th place.
During
the stage-break caution, the 19 team pitted for 4 tires, fuel, and a
chassis adjustment. When the race resumed, he restarted in 16th.
During stage 2, he ran as high was 12th place and as far back as 20th. He reported his car too free in turn 1, tight on the exit of
turns 2 and 4. He finished stage 2 in 14th place.
During
the stage-break caution, they pitted for fuel and just 2 tires, gaining
11 positions. He came off pit road in 3rd. With two cars staying out,
he restarted in 5th place. He spent the next 40 or so laps running in
the top ten, as high as 4th and no further back than 8th. Green-flag
pit stops ran over the next 15 laps, with Daniel reporting that his car
was loose getting into the corner.
Once
the green-flag pit stops cycled through, he found himself slipping
out of the top ten. About 25 laps later, he was put a lap down while
running in 12th. He continued to struggle with a car so loose he could
hardly drive it. Then, during the final lap, he got caught up in a
wreck that happened directly ahead of him. As a result he wheeled his
ARRIS Toyota home in 18th place 1 lap down.
He earned 19 points this race, bringing
his season
total up to 373 points. He maintained his 18th spot in the drivers'
standings. He finished 12 spots behind Erik Jones, losing another 21
big points to him, now 53 points behind. He finished 15 positions ahead
of Ty Dillon, gaining 15 points on him, now putting him 72 points
ahead.
While
Daniel has been leading in the separate rookie standings throughout the
season, his lead had been whittled down to just a couple of points. I suspected that his bad luck in this race would see him lose his lead, and that is exactly what happened:
- Erik Jones -- 193
- Daniel Suarez -- 189
-
Ty Dillon -- 166
- Corey LaJoie -- 124
- Gray Gaulding -- 109
This weekend was the third time this year that NASCAR indulged in their ridiculous fascination with dangerous superspeedways. i always hope that Daniel Suarez has a good finish, but that becomes secondary when the restrictor plates go on. Instead this is the time i pray that he will leave the track healthy and in one piece.
As another double duty weekend, Daniel's responsibilities started with the Xfinity series. His zippy racecar logged the 6th fastest time in the first practice session. To ensure that the car would stay in one piece for the race, they elected to sit out of the second and final practice session. During qualifying, he was 8th in the first round, advancing to the second and final round. Then another 8th place finish determined his starting position for the race.
During the first 7 laps of the race, he ran between 3rd and 8th place. But then the raince came and stayed. And stayed. And stayed. Eventually NASCAR postponed the race to Saturday afternoon, a red flag that lasted for 16 hours and 15 minutes.
Daniel indicated that he was driving the best superspeedway car he has ever had, so everyone was eager for the race to get back underway. He restarted in 4th on lap 13. He fell back, running between 9th and 16th, eventually finishing stage 1 on lap 30 in 15th place. When stage 2 got underway he ran between 15th and 22nd until Mother Nature intruded again. This time it was lightning that delayed the race for 2 hours and 29 minutes.
When the race resumed, he restarted in 19th. Within 5 laps he had gained 7 spots. But then, on lap 51, he was involved in a crash that ended his day with a 39th place finish.
On the Cup side of the garage, his car was 14th in the first practice session. Just as they decided to do in the Xfinity series, they did not go out during the second and final practice session. Qualifying was rather blah. He logged the 20th fastest time in the first round, so he did not move on. That destined him to start the race in the middle of the pack.
Thankfully the weather was more cooperative for the Cup race. Stage 1 was fairly uneventful for Mr. Suarez and the Subway car. He ran between 14th and 28th, finishing lap 40 in 18th place.
Stage 2 saw him move closer to the front of the field. He started the stage with a pit stop for fuel and only 2 tires, gaining him valuable track position. He came off pit road in 4th place. With one car staying on the track, he restarted in 5th place. But 3 laps later he made contact with another car. With a smart, head's up move, he was able to save it and keep it out of the grass by shooting down pit road. He was able to get right back onto the racetrack, but by the time he got back up to speed he was in 35th place.
The next of many cautions popped up just 8 laps later. This gave the 19 team the opportunity to visit pit road twice, once for the usual tires and fuel, then again to check for tire rubs. He restarted in 34th on lap 63. Throughout the remainder of stage 2, he steadily moved forward through the field. By lap 70 he was up to 12th, and when the stage ended 10 laps later he was in 14th.
And then, the ultimate in gaining track position . . . they stayed out. When stage 3 went green, he restarted in 3rd place on lap 85. Another quickie caution, and 5 laps later he restarted in the lead, a spot he held for 10 laps. It was a thrill to watch him lead the race!
But then he got left high and dry on the inside lane and plummeted all the way back to the dangerous middle of the pack in 23rd place. He picked up 5 positions in just 2 laps, but then he was involved in contact on lap 106. He pitted for 4 tires and fuel, then restarted in 19th place.
The next 20+ laps saw 3 more cautions, and he stayed out each time. During the restart on lap 129, he found himself in 5th place. And 4 laps after that, he put his Subway Camry in the outside lane and barreled past the cars ahead of him, claiming and holding the lead for 1 lap. This was not him grabbing the lead because someone else messed up. This was a power move, as he mowed down the lead cars, and it was beautiful to behold.
Unfortunately Daniel could not hold his position near the front of the field. Over the remaining 25 laps, caught on the inside lane, he dropped back, bit by bit, until he eventually crossed the start/finish line in 17th place, the best finish from the Gibbs stable of drivers. He earned 20 points this race, bringing his season
total up to 354 points. He moved up 1 spot in the drivers' standings, from 19th to 18th.
He finished 8 spots behind Erik Jones, losing 8 points to him, now 32 points back. And he finished 1 position behind Ty Dillon, losing 4 points to him, but maintaining a healthy lead of 57 points. And on the separate rookie standings, here are the current numbers:
- Daniel Suarez --185
- Erik Jones -- 183
-
Ty Dillon -- 163
- Corey LaJoie -- 124
- Gray Gaulding -- 101
Next up is the intermediate track in Kentucky, where Daniel will be focused exclusively on the Cup race.
Daniel Suarez's car did not roll off the hauler with a lot of speed. Or maybe Daniel Suarez did not roll into Sonoma, California, with a lot of road course racing experience. In any case, he was only 30th fastest in the first practice and 20th fastest in the second and final session. Surprisingly qualifying went much better. He was 11th fastest in both rounds, locking in a top 12 starting position.
But once the race got started, he locked up his brakes in the final turn of the first lap, flat-spotting his tires, and getting minor damage to the nose of his car. He brought his car down pit road to the attention of Scott Graves and his crew for 4 fresh tires. When he got back out on the track and up to speed, he had fallen back to 38th, and it was only lap 3.
He had only moved up 2 spots when the yellow flag came out on lap 14. He stayed out and restarted in 9th. As the race resumed, he immediately fell back to 16th. Four laps later he came back down pit road for a green-flag pit stop. The strategy was to stop before pit road closed for the end of stage 1 so they could stay out during the stage-break caution and gain track position. His crew gave him fresh tires and fuel, and the 19 Stanley Camry came back out in 32nd. That is where he finished stage 1 at the end of lap 25.
Staying out allowed him to restarted in 16th. He stayed out during the next two cautions, allowing him to advance as far as 9th by lap 40. However on lap 44 he got spun out. No damage, but it dropped him back to 21st. Time for another green-flag pit stop, putting him back to 34th place. He advanced 12 spots during the final 6 laps of the stage, crossing the start/finish line in 22nd.
Once again that late green-flag pit stop allowed the 19 team to stay out during the stage-break caution, restarting in 14th. Over the next 16 laps he ran between 12th and 17th. Lap 70 was time for another green-flag pit stop. This one put him back to 29th. As his competitors came in for their green-flag pit stops, he advanced back up to 16th place. After another 19 laps it was time for another green-flag pit stop, coming back onto the track in 26th. Again he regained positions as the field cycled, bringing him back up to 18th place by lap 101. Nine laps later, he finished the race in 16th place.
He
earned 21 points, bringing his season
total up to 334 points. He remains 19th in the drivers' standings. He
finished 9 spots ahead of Erik Jones, gaining back 9 points, now 24
points back. And he finished 12 spots ahead of Ty Dillon, gaining 12 more points and moving to a total of 61 points ahead.
And on the separate rookie standings, here are the current numbers:
- Daniel Suarez --177
- Erik Jones -- 170
- Ty Dillon -- 154
- Corey LaJoie -- 114
- Gray Gaulding -- 101
Next
week the Cup series heads to back to Daytona, Florida, where anything can and has happened. I am praying that Daniel remains safe and grabs another good finish.
Happy Father's Day to all of the dads out there. Feliz
día del padre a todos padres. How appropriate that on Father's Day, Daniel Suarez's dad,
Alejandro, was able to come up to Michigan to cheer on his son. I am
sure both were hoping his attendance would bring good luck, especially because Daniel was returning to the scene of his first victory in the Xfinity series just one year ago.
The car they rolled out of the hauler was not that fast, though, only 22nd fastest in the first practice session. During qualifying, he managed the 13th fastest speed in the first round and advanced. But he was only 20th fastest in the second round, ending his qualifying attempts. The final two practice sessions saw him in 16th and 6th, so perhaps his team found some speed in his Stanley Camry.
Before the race they found something wrong with one his tires. As a result of changing tires he had to drop to the back of the field during the warm-up laps, so he was in 31st place on lap 1. During an early-race caution on lap 7, Scott Graves, his crew chief, called him down pit road for 4 tires, giving them strategy options during the upcoming competition caution. Those 4 fresh tires allowed him to moved up to 21st place by the competition caution on lap 25. And because they had just recently put 4 fresh tires on, this time down pit road they went with a 2-tire stop. When the race resumed on lap 30, Daniel was perched in 16th place. He spent the rest of stage 1 and all of stage 2 ranging between 14th and 19th place, finishing stage 1 in 19th and stage 2 in 18th.
Because their green-flag pit stop occurred just 6 laps before the end of stage 2, they were able to stay out during the stage-break caution. When the race resumed on lap 126, the 19 team restarted in 10th. Over the next 25 laps he ranged from 7th to 12th. But during the lap 151 caution, Daniel overshot his pit box. The extra second or two needed to back up the car had him coming off pit road in 20th.
During the next 25 laps, his position ranged from 18th to 21st. Then again during the next caution, Graves kept Daniel on the track, enabled them to restart in 12th. One lap later, another caution, and another decision to stay out, this time restarting in 10th. With only 10 laps to go, it looked like Daniel had a good shot at another top ten. And with gas mileage on everybody's minds, who knows? Maybe even a top five.
But instead of the bad luck hitting his competitors, this time the bad luck hit Daniel. Ahead of him, cars on older tires struggled on the restart. The resulting pingponging of cars found the 19 car in three- and four-wide situations. Those situations seldom resolve themselves without something bad happening to someone. Eventually someone from behind caught the back corner of his Stanley Toyota, hooking him toward the infield.
A car on his inside combined with some pretty fancy driving kept his car from spinning out of the control, but enough damage was done that they had to come down pit road for repairs and 4 fresh tires. Daniel restarted in 26th, and with only 5 laps remaining in the race, he was only able to advance 2 spots.
He ended the day in 24th place, earning 13 points, bringing his season total up to 313 points. He remains 19th in the drivers' standings. He finished 11 spots behind Erik Jones, losing more ground to him, now 33 points back. But even though he finished 4 spots behind Ty Dillon, he is still a strong 49 points ahead of him.
And on the separate rookie standings, here are the current numbers:
- Daniel Suarez --166
- Erik Jones -- 160
-
Ty Dillon -- 145
- Corey LaJoie -- 114
- Gray Gaulding -- 101
Next week the Cup series heads to California for the first road course of the season. It will be fun to see how Daniel does on road courses. Anybody know if he has had any experience on road courses in Mexico?
Once again Daniel Suarez found him handling double duty. In Xfinity, his practice speeds put him 10th and 4th. In qualifying, he was 12th in the first round, then 7th in the second and final round to determine his starting position.
When the Xfinity race got underway, he shot forward, up to 3rd on the first lap. He maintained a spot in the top six throughout stage 1, finishing in 5th place. He sang the same song in stage 2, until 3 laps before the end of the stage. His team opted to bring him down pit road, so he finished the stage in 22nd. But because he had recently pitted, he did not have to pit during the stage-break caution, allowing him to restart in 4th place.
Just like he did at the beginning of the race, he gained on the cars ahead of him. Ten laps later, he took the lead. Then it was time for a green-flag pit stop. He came back out onto the track in 13th place. But NASCAR caught him speeding on pit road, and the resulting pass-through penalty put him back in 28th on lap 70.
He picked his way forward one position at a time. A caution just 7 laps later allowed him to stay out, restarting 10th. He never fell out of the top ten again. Over the remaining 16 laps he gained 5 more positions, eventually bringing his car home in 5th place.
In Cup, his car was not showing the same amount of speed. He was only 26th fastest in both practice sessions. In qualifying, he was 21st in the first round, then 14th to determine his starting spot.
Once Sunday's race got started, he moved forward a little at a time. By lap 5 he was in the top ten. He was able to maintain a spot in the top 12 until his green-flag pit stop on lap 19. By the time the field cycled through their green-flag pit stops, he found himself in 13th place. Stage 1 ended 8 laps later with his #19 ARRIS Toyota in 15th place.
He started stage 2 in 16th place. Not counting cycling through green-flag pit stops, Daniel ran between 14th and 21st place. He was in 19th place when the race was red flagged for cleanup following two separate incidents, which is where he finished stage 2.
Because he pitted just 4 laps before the red flag, he was able to stay out during the stage-break caution. That allowed him to restarted 7th on lap 105, but he could not hold that position. He fell back to 15th before his green-flag pit stop on lap 123. After they cycled through, he was up to 14th place. The last caution flag flew on lap 141 out of 160. When the race resumed with 13 laps to go, he was on 19th place. He was able to advance to 15th before the race ended.
He earned 22 points, bringing his total in the drivers' standings up to 300 and continuing to hold in the 19th place. He finished 12 spots behind Erik Jones, so he lost ground to his key challenger in the rookie competition, now 22 points behind him. But he finished 3 spots ahead of Ty Dillon, increasing his lead over him to 53 points.
And on the separate rookie standings, here are the current numbers:
- Daniel Suarez -- 157
- Erik Jones -- 149
-
Ty Dillon -- 135
- Corey LaJoie -- 106
- Gray Gaulding -- 101
During post race inspection, it was noted that Daniel's car had a missing lug nut. His crew chief, Scott Graves, was fined $10,000.
Next week NASCAR rolls into Michigan International Speedway, which is where Daniel won his first race last year to kick start his run to the Xfinity championship. To get primed for next weekend, take a look at this clip:
Dover dished up another dose of double duty for Daniel. The extra practice from running in the Xfinity race has proven to be invaluable in providing Daniel with more opportunities to learn the tracks.
His #18 Subway crew unloaded a pretty fast Xfinity racecar, notching the 4th and 9th fastest speeds in the two practice sessions. Qualifying went even better, as he grabbed the 2nd fastest times in the first two rounds, finally ending up 3rd in the third and final round to determine his starting spot for the race.
As the race got underway, he ran in the top five for the first 45 laps. But after restarting 3rd on lap 46, he felt his right rear tire going down. As he tried to control his car and work his way to the inside wall to maneuver onto pit road, he dropped to back to 23rd. By the time he got back on the racetrack with two fresh right-side tires and some fuel, he was 2 laps down in 35th. When stage 1 ended on lap 60, he was 2 laps down in 32nd.
During the caution following the end of stage 1, Daniel stayed out, took the wave around, and got 1 lap back. Just 15 laps later, he was in the lucky dog position, the first car one lap down, when a caution got him the free pass to get back onto the lead lap. When the race resumed on lap 80, he was at the tail end of the longest line in 29th place.
If
you are going to have a problem during the race, it is best to have it
early so you have time to recover. And recover he did. Every lap or two, he would pick up another spot. In 11 laps, he was back inside the top 20. Another 10 laps, and he cracked the top 15. And 10 laps after that, he was in the top 10 again. But another caution and varying pit strategies saw him restarting 19th on lap 115. When stage 2 ended 5 laps later, he was in 16th.
He stayed out during the between-stages caution and restarted the race in 2nd place. One lap later he took the lead, which he held for the next 19 laps. While his car was not stout enough to catch the leader and eventual winner, he did wheel his car to a 3rd place finish.
Things were looking good over on the Cup side of the garage, too. He logged practice speeds that put him between 8th and 15th fastest. Qualifying went even better, finishing each round in the top ten and eventually earning the 3rd spot on the starting grid.
Once the race got underway, he maintaining a spot in the top 5 for the first 50 laps. The next 50 laps, he ran between 6th and 10th. During the last 20 laps of stage 1, he ran between 10th and 14th. As stage 1 ended, he came across the start/finish line in 10th.
He stayed out for the between-stage caution, restarting in 7th. He stayed in the top 10 for the next 20 laps. During the next 100 laps, he ran between 11th and 15th, eventually ending stage 2 in 13th place.
Stage 3 began with Daniel and his #19 Stanley Camry in 12th place. For the next 85 laps, he ran between 8th and 12th. But the race which had seen many cautions, allowing for frequent pit stops, suddenly went green for quite some time. On lap 325, Daniel's crew chief, Scott Graves, brought him down pit road for a green flag pit stop to get fresh tires and more fuel. As a result, he found himself 1 lap down in 20th place.
As luck would have it, a caution came out just 3 laps later, allowing them to take the wave around and get back on the lead lap. He restarted 16th and started moving forward. He was getting close enough to see the top 10 when a caution came out with just 4 laps to go. He pitted for 2 tires and lined up in 9th place for the final restart. That is when the day ended under caution as a result of a Talladega-style crash.
Thankfully Daniel came through unscathed, crossing the finish line in 6th place, his best finish thus far in his first Cup season. He was the highest finishing rookie as well as the highest finishing member of the Gibbs teams. He earned 32 points, bringing him to a total of 278 points, which keeps him 19th in the drivers' standings. He finished 9 spots ahead of Erik Jones, earning 5 points more than him, bringing Daniel to within 5 points of Erik. And he finished 8 positions ahead of Ty Dillon, earning 9 points more than him, positioning him 50 points ahead of him in the standings.
And on the separate rookie standings, here are the current numbers:
- Daniel Suarez -- 147
- Erik Jones -- 130
-
Ty Dillon -- 126
- Corey LaJoie -- 98
- Gray Gaulding --94
By the way, Daniel's #19 Stanley Camry was the random car chosen to go to back to the R&D Center this week.
Next weekend we are off to Pocono to dodge the Pennsylvania raindrops and tackle the tricky triangle, where Daniel will once again do double duty in both the Xfinity and Cup series.
