Races May 9, 2026 7 Team Starts Front Row, Rallies to Top 10 Finish at Texas. Date: May 3rd, 2026 Event: Würth 400 (Round 11 of 36) Series: NASCAR Cup Series Location: Texas Motor Speedway (1.5-mile oval) Format: 267 laps, broken into three stages (80 laps/85 laps/102 laps) Start/Finish: 2nd / 6th (running, completed 267 of 267 laps) Playoff Standings: 14th with 271 points Notes: Daniel Suárez, driver of the No. 7 Freeway Insurance Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Spire Motorsports, battled handling issues throughout the day, but rebounded to finish sixth for his third top 10 of the season in the Würth 400 presented by LIQUI MOLY at Texas Motor Speedway. Suárez earned his best starting position of the season, qualifying second—just three thousandths off the pole. The 34-year-old driver reported the blue-and-green Freeway machine was loose and needed more rear grip for better handling. He dropped back to 15th before pitting on Lap 36 and rejoining the field in 21st. When the caution flag waved on Lap 69, Suárez relayed to his team that his Chevrolet was handling the same had not improved. Crew chief Ryan Sparks called him to his pit stall for four tires and an air pressure adjustment for better handling. Suárez ended Stage 1 in 15th, noting a slight improvement in handling. Before the green flag for Stage 2, the No. 7 team bolted on two right-side Goodyear Eagle tires, made an air pressure adjustment, and added Sunoco fuel. Suárez restarted 20th after his competitors executed a variety of pit road strategies. A caution on Lap 93 found him running 25th and Sparks elected to stay out for track position. Suárez restarted fifth, and after a quick follow-up caution, advanced to third. Racing resumed on Lap 107 with Suárez quickly moving into second while focusing on fuel conservation. With six laps remaining in the stage, he pitted for four tires and an adjustment in the left rear to improve handling. He restarted eight and gained two positions in the final two laps of Stage 2 for a sixth place finish, and five bonus points to aid the team’s push toward a spot in the playoffs. The Monterey, Mexico native started fourth for the final segment and remained in the top 10 before making his scheduled green-flag stop on Lap 215. Suárez came to pit road for fuel and four tires, cycling to ninth with 52 laps remaining. With 11 laps to go in the race, a spin off Turn 4 brought out the caution. Sparks opted to bolt on right-side tires for a four-lap shootout, and Suárez restarted eighth. Despite handling issues in Stage 1 and 2, Suárez earned a sixth place finish and notched his third top-10 of the season through 11 races, while remaining 14th in points. Daniel Suárez, driver of the No. 7 Freeway Insurance Chevrolet Camaro for Spire Motorsports: “Honestly, this weekend was a perfect example of having a fast No. 7 Freeway Insurance Chevrolet but dealing with a lot going against us. The tire issues in practice and early in the race made things really tough, and the balance wasn’t where we needed it to be. But I’m very proud of this Spire Motorsports team. We never gave up and kept working to make the car better. The start of the race wasn’t pretty, but we kept making adjustments and found speed as the day went on. We knew the car had potential, it just felt like everything was being thrown at us. Still, everyone stayed focused, kept pushing, and we were able to recover for a solid finish. Overall, a good weekend for us here in Texas.”
