Daniel Suarez’s career clock is ticking down. With each passing week and resulting race, he comes one step closer to the conclusion of his five-year stint with Trackhouse Racing. Suarez and team owner Justin Marks both announced several weeks ago that Suarez’s contract would not be renewed and that he will become a free agent at season’s end.
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While Suarez has been a vital cog in both NASCAR’s and Trackhouse’s attempt to attract new fans, particularly from the Hispanic community — as evidenced by June’s road course race in Mexico City — it wasn’t enough to keep Suarez with Trackhouse.
But where will Suarez wind up? Trackhouse was his fourth Cup team, preceded by his first team, Joe Gibbs Racing, followed by stints with Stewart-Haas Racing, Gaunt Brothers Racing and Trackhouse. He may even have to dip down to the Xfinity Series for a ride. While his future is questionable at best, Suarez is hoping to finish his Trackhouse tenure strong.
“I just want to win and end my cycle with Trackhouse on a high,” Suarez told Frontstretch.com after his strong seventh place showing at Watkins Glen on Sunday.
Suarez is currently 29th in the Cup standings. The only way he could make the playoffs is with a win in either of the last two regular season races: this Saturday night at Richmond and the following Sunday at Daytona. He’s hopeful that he could pull off a surprise, particularly at Richmond.
“Richmond is a track I really like a lot,” Suarez said. “Hopefully, we can take this momentum (from Watkins Glen) into next week and continue to build.
“For me, the playoffs are important, but the most important thing for me is to win. I don’t care if it’s before the playoffs or after the playoffs. I just want to win.”
Could Suarez play spoiler and potentially knock someone off the bubble even if it means Suarez doesn’t make the playoffs? “Yeah, yeah,” he said. “If we have a car on execution like today, why not?”
“I just want to win and end my cycle with Trackhouse on a high.” –@Daniel_SuarezG earns a top 10 at Watkins Glen.#NASCAR pic.twitter.com/BUzMbHkmS6
— Frontstretch (@Frontstretch) August 10, 2025
Unfortunately, the numbers aren’t exactly in his favor: In 15 starts at the Richmond bullring, Suarez has just four top-10 finishes. At Daytona, he has just one top-10 in 16 starts there.
On the plus side, both of Suarez’s career Cup wins came under the Trackhouse banner, Sonoma in 2022 and Atlanta in spring 2024. But on the negative side, Suarez and the No. 99 team have been inconsistent. Of his 168 starts for Trackhouse, Suarez has the two afore-mentioned wins, but only 15 top-five finishes and 40 top-10s.
What’s more, Suarez qualified for the playoffs in just two seasons, finishing 10th in 2022 and 12th last season. Sunday’s seventh-place finish was Suarez’s first top-10 showing in the last 13 starts. Is it any wonder that Trackhouse and he will soon be parting ways?
Still, you have to give him credit that he remains with a positive mindset. And who knows, maybe he will continue with the momentum he earned at Watkins Glen and may wind up convincing a team owner who needs a driver for next year to give Suarez a call.
