Suarez Happier, More relaxed With Stewart-Haas Racing

Daniel Suarez has certainly never lost his confidence, and he's already feeling more relaxed and happier in his first NASCAR Cup season with Stewart-Haas Racing.

Only six races in with his new team, Suarez is coming off his second top-10 finish.

MARTINSVILLE, VA - MARCH 23: Daniel Suarez, driver of the #41 Haas Automation Chevrolet, drives during practice for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series STP 500 at Martinsville Speedway on March 23, 2019 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)

"It's always good to be with a group of guys like this. Last year, I wasn't unhappy, it was just a little bit different, and this year I just feel more relaxed ... just to do my thing," he said Friday. "I feel like now we are consistent, moving in the right direction."

Suarez qualified fourth for Sunday's race at Texas Motor Speedway, the NASCAR track closest to his hometown of Monterrey, Mexico, just under 600 miles away. He had a group of about 10 friends making the trip from Mexico to TMS to watch him race.

FORT WORTH, TX - MARCH 29: Daniel Suarez, driver of the #41 Ruckus Ford, practices for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series O'Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on March 29, 2019 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)

"It's the only race track that actually my family and friends, they can drive from my hometown. It's always cool," said Suarez, 27. "So it's always fun to come to Texas."

After two Cup seasons and 21 top-10 finishes with Joe Gibbs Racing, the team for which he won the 2016 Xfinity championship, Suarez needed a new ride after 2017 Cup champion Martin Truex Jr. was hired by JGR.

His second chance at NASCAR's top level came when he replaced Kurt Busch in the No. 41 Ford for Stewart-Haas Racing.

HAMPTON, GA - FEBRUARY 24: Daniel Suarez, driver of the #41 ARRIS Ford, races, Kyle Larson, driver of the #42 McDonald's Chevrolet, during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on February 24, 2019 in Hampton, Georgia. (Photo by Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images)

"It's been average. I think it's been OK," Suarez said about his season. "There's a lot of room to improve, but I don't want to sweat it yet. We have a lot of potential to do good things with this car. ... We still need some speed, some just raw speed, but we're going to get there."

Suarez, who advanced through NASCAR's diversity program, is the only non-American full-time driver at the Cup level.

He started karting in 2002 and won the Mexican national championship five years later. He won 10 races in the NASCAR PEAK Mexico Series in 2008 then moved to North Carolina to pursue NASCAR's national level.

FORT WORTH, TX - MARCH 30: Daniel Suarez, driver of the #41 Ruckus Ford, looks on during practice for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series O'Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on March 30, 2019 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)

After being the Xfinity Series rookie of the year in 2015, and winning three races on the way to his 2016 Xfinity title, JGR had an unplanned Cup opening when Carl Edwards suddenly and unexpectedly retired after the 2016 season-opening that seat for Suarez.

When Suarez was walking up pit road after his 10th-place finish last week at Martinsville, he was sprayed by a drink from a can that was apparently thrown and burst open when it hit the ground.

"I don't think it was thrown at me. The guy had to be extremely good to try to hit me that close while I was walking," Suarez said Friday. "I turned around and saw a lot of drunk people there, but I doubt it was for me. Who knows? ... I don't care."

HAMPTON, GA - FEBRUARY 23: Daniel Suarez, driver of the #41 ARRIS Ford, stands in the garage area during practice for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Folds of Honor Quiktrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on February 23, 2019 in Hampton, Georgia. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

But Suarez said there was nothing yelled at him or about him before that happened, as some Twitter posts this week suggested.

"I actually spent 30 seconds there waiting for my interviews, and nobody said anything," he said. "It's just people making stuff up. Nobody said anything."

© 2019 Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Read more
f

We and our partners use cookies to understand how you use our site, improve your experience and serve you personalized content and advertising. Read about how we use cookies in our cookie policy and how you can control them by clicking Manage Settings. By continuing to use this site, you accept these cookies.