Daniel Suarez received heartbreaking news last week. His contract with Trackhouse Racing is not going to be renewed beyond the ongoing season, and he will have to look for a new team to drive for in 2026. It is always hard for a driver to part ways with his team after being a crucial part there for several years. Erik Jones is someone who has been in this exact position.
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The 29-year-old spent three years driving for Joe Gibbs Racing from 2018 to 2020 before he moved to Richard Petty Motorsports. He spoke about this transition and its similarity with Suarez’s situation on a recent episode of Door, Bumper, Clear. Jones said, “It’s tough. For me, at the time, I wasn’t excited that I got fired.”
He went on to explain, “I was looking forward to just seeing what was out there. I had been in that one group for a long time. So, it was interesting to see and work with a different group. And it helped me a lot, honestly — just going and doing something completely different. Working with a group that didn’t have all the resources. I learned a lot through everything.”
Jones believes that the situation for Suarez is tougher since he has been with Trackhouse Racing for a long time. Everyone from top to bottom has been in place for some time now, and breaking away from them will be hard. That said, he also reiterated that being with Trackhouse Racing doesn’t seem like the ideal way ahead for Suarez.
Jones explained, “Ross [Chastain] has had some success. Daniel hasn’t quite been able to have that same level. And I don’t think that’s all on him. So, does he have a spot in Cup? I don’t know. Does he deserve it? Probably. But I don’t know if there’s space.”
Awareness of this is also why Justin Marks, team owner of Trackhouse Racing, made the announcement midseason. Giving Suarez enough time to find a new home was a priority, considering their friendship.
Jones, for his part, stated how Suarez has two options in this second half of his career. He could stay in the Cup Series if a mid-level team takes him in or move a step down to the Xfinity Series and begin winning races. He used Justin Allgaier as an example to make his case that the latter choice wouldn’t be a bad way to go about things.
“I think he just internally has to decide what he wants to do,” Jones said. “Do you want to grind it out in Cup? Yeah, you’re going to make more money, right? Even running 20th every week. Do you want to do that and tough it out for the next however many years it happens or do you want to go win races?”
Going back to the Xfinity Series is an option. However, Suarez has already been down that road and might not want to go back to it. The next move is the Mexican’s to make.
