Races March 22, 2021March 22, 2021 Suffers Pit Road Penalty While Racing in Fifth in Closing Laps. Date: March 21st, 2021 Event: Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 (Round 6 of 36) Series: NASCAR Cup Series Location: Atlanta Motor Speedway (1.54-mile oval) Format: 325 laps, broken into three stages (105 laps/105 laps/115 laps) Start/Finish: 24th / 15st (completed 324 of 325 laps) Point Standing: 23rd with 95 points Notes: Daniel Suárez finished 17th in Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. A pit road speeding penalty while running fifth in the race’s closing laps kept the No. 99 from posting a top-five finish. After starting 24th, Suárez finished Stage 1 in 19th fighting off leader Kyle Larsen in the closing laps to stay on the lead lap. He moved to ninth by lap 140 and led lap 161 during a pit cycle – his 16th lap led of the season. Suárez finished 10th in Stage 2 to earn one bonus point – the first in Trackhouse Racing history. Suárez charged to the front in the final stage and look ready to battle for the victory. He pitted under green from fifth with 57 laps remaining. However, a speeding penalty forced him to return to pit road for a pass-through penalty. The penalty dropped Suárez to 20th and a lap behind the leaders. He rebounded to finish 17th. Jose Blasco served as interim crew chief today in place of Travis Mack who was suspended for the race because of loose lug nuts at Phoenix last Sunday. Blasco and Suárez combined for the first Latino crew chief-driver pairing in recent NASCAR history. The finish moves Suárez to 23rd in the driver standings after six races. Suárez and the NASCAR Cup Series return to action Sunday for the first ever dirt race at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway. It will mark the first Cup Series dirt race since 1970. Daniel Suárez, driver of the No. 99 CommScope Chevrolet Camaro for Trackhouse Racing: You have to be encouraged with how you ran for most of the race? “Yeah, it was good. I’m very proud of everyone in this group. They work very, very hard. They build a very fast car. It was a car capable of finishing in the Top 10, that’s for sure. I made a mistake on my part that kind of got us out of contention. But it’s something very good to build on.” What did you think of Jose Blasco and your team today? “Yeah, he was good. Jose and I already know each other. So, it was good to have Jose today in the box. although we do miss Travis (Mack). Travis is very, very good and he already knows me. This was the first time ever working with Jose making the calls. I feel like overall it was a positive day. It’s just not the result that we deserve.”
