NASCAR CUP SERIES
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
DAYTONA 500
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
FEBRUARY 3, 2021
DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 TRACKHOUSE RACING TEAM CAMARO ZL1 1LE, Daytona Media Availability Highlights:
NASCAR HAS PROVIDED INCREASED OPPORTUNITIES FOR MINORITY AND WOMEN SINCE YOU HAVE COME UP THE RANKS. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO YOU?
“It’s been a process. I don’t think NASCAR has been doing that just since I came into the ranks. I think NASCAR has been doing that since way before me. It’s just everything about having the right people around you and the right opportunity and the right timing. I feel like I’m extremely fortunate to have opportunities in my career; with a lot of support from NASCAR and from race teams and all the people in Mexico that have been supporting me since day one. So, it’s a combination of things. But definitely NASCAR and the NASCAR Latino group, they have worked extremely hard to make this a place for everyone. The diversity program and many other programs that NASCAR has and that they’ve been working on for many years to try to make this sport welcome for not just Americans, but for many drivers around the world. Not just for Americans but for many drivers around the world and everywhere in Europe and everybody in South America that the opportunity to come to this country and have a career.”
HOW DO YOU THINK BUBBA WALLACE AND MICHAEL JORDAN GETTING TOGETHER IS GOING TO HELP BOOST THIS EFFORT? ITS GOING TO BRING A LOT OF ATTENTION.
“I don’t know how that’s going to help me yet (laughs), but I wish them the best.”
LISTENING TO PITBULL AND JUSTIN MARKS YESTERDAY, THERE IS A LOT OF BUZZ IN THE TEAM OFF THE TRACK. AS A NEW TEAM, HOW LONG DO YOU THINK IT IS GOING TO TAKE YOU TO GET UP TO SPEED TO MATCH THAT ON THE TRACK?
“Yeah, it’s a combination. It’s like this combination of (Denny) Hamlin, Jordan and Wallace; and now you’re looking at the other side at myself, Justin, and Pitbull. It’s a process. It won’t happen overnight. It won’t happen like that. But we are very fortunate. Both of these organizations, we are very fortunate that we have very, very good manufacturer support and also very good partnerships. They’re going to help make this process very smooth. I do believe that this sport is changing. I do believe that having Pitbull like Michael Jordan and Pitbull in the sport is a plus for everyone in just bringing more attention. But especially for the race teams and the entire sport. So, I’m just very excited about where this sport is heading. I’m very fortunate to be a small part of this. I was talking to Justin actually, a few weeks ago, about five or six months ago, all this was just plans, and where we wanted to go. And to look back and to see where we are today is pretty incredible. We haven’t even raced yet. And to see all the ground that we have made in the off-season is pretty incredible. I’m extremely happy in the position that we are, and I can’t wait to go to the race track.”
WHEN IT COMES TO PITBULL, HE HAS 22.2 MILLION OR MORE FOLLOWERS. MICHAEL JORDAN ALSO HAS A LOT. NASCAR DRIVERS HAVE A LOT, BUT NOTHING LIKE THAT AS FAR AS FOLLOWERS ON SOCIAL MEDIA. WHAT KIND OF IMPACT DO YOU THINK THAT WILL HAVE ON THE SPORT?
“Yeah, I’m not even close. The reality is that if you ask anyone that’s involved in racing about who is Daniel Suarez, most likely that will know, right? But if you ask someone in the street, who knows? It may be 50-50, it may be 30-70. Who knows? The thing here is that Michael Jordan and Pitbull are well known. They have a fan base extremely, extremely white; into sports, into lifestyle, into different countries; and that’s something that’s amazing because that will make the sport, in a way, with more eyes; but not just in the United States, but international. That, for me, is a huge plus. I think that will help a lot. And yeah, it’s actually funny. When I was with Pitbull back in December in Miami talking with him, he mentioned to me that his biggest fanbase was actually in Asia. That never even crossed my mind about Pitbull’s biggest fanbase being in Asia. I was thinking probably Mexico, probably Brazil, probably Columbia, Cuba, somewhere in Latino markets. But Asia? That never even crossed my mind. It’s pretty incredible the amount of eyes that are going to be looking to the sport because of these two individuals in 2021.”
HAVING RACED FOR GAUNT BROTHERS, COULD YOU HAVE IMAGINED FIVE OR SIX MONTHS AGO BEING IN THE POSITION THAT YOU ARE NOW WITH ALL THE HYPE AROUND YOUR TEAM?
“Listen man, what happened last year for me, it was very difficult. It was very, very difficult. I feel like I really learned a lot for myself and mentally. To be one hundred percent honest with everyone, today I feel much stronger as a person and a driver. At the beginning of 2019 for example, I had actually a good team behind me. Why? Circumstances, you know. Experiences. You know, experiences of what do you need to actually be competitive, people-wise, the support of the organization. So, there’s a lot of things that go into that. And yeah, I felt like last year was by far the worst year I have had in my career, but it really taught me a lot as a person. I can learn anything on the race track, to be honest. But, as a person and a driver, it really helped me a lot. And they say that what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, right? I think many of you are going to see the best version of myself in 2021.”
THE SPORT IS IN A POSITION RIGHT NOW TO REALLY ENTER A NEW ERA WITH PITBULL OWNERSHIP AS WELL AS MICHAEL JORDAN’S. ONE OF THE HOLES ON THE RACE TRACK THIS YEAR IS GOING TO BE THE LACK OF JIMMIE JOHNSON. IS THAT GOING TO HAVE ANY IMPACT ON THE LEADERSHIP OF THE SPORT FROM A DRIVER’S STANDPOINT?
“I like Jimmie a lot. I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to race against him for a few years. What an amazing driver and what an amazing career he has had. I want to be very fortunate, hopefully, in five to 10 years to win races and have a championship or two under my belt, and telling my kids, you know what? I raced with that guy. And I didn’t just race but I beat him some times and I learned a lot from that guy. I have a lot of respect for Jimmie. At the same time, with that being said, we have a lot of good leadership in the sport. One driver doesn’t make the sport. It doesn’t matter who it is. We have a lot of drivers with a lot of experience. They’ve been in the sport for a long time and they have a very loud voice s well. So, with that being said and with all the respect I have for Jimmie, I don’t think the sport is going to lack leadership. I think Jimmie was definitely one of them, but we still have a lot of loud voices that are going to keep moving this sport in the right direction.”
YOU’VE BEEN BOUNCED AROUND THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS WHEN IT COMES TO TEAMS AND MANUFACTURERS. DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU’VE FINALLY FOUND A HOME WITH YOU NEW SITUATION WITH TRACKHOUSE? YOU SAID YOU REALLY WANTED SOME STABILITY. DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE A HOME WITH THIS TEAM?
“I do. I really do. And the reason for that is because we’re growing this together. For me this is very important. Number one: competition. Number two: the mission of the team and where we want to go in two, three, four, or five years. Number three: everything that’s involved with the racing outside (like) different programs and different organizations to try to help communities. These three boxes for me are extremely important. Trackhouse checks them extremely, extremely well. I’ve been part of big teams. I’ve been part of small teams. And I have learned many, many things. People are so important. And having the right people behind you is key. If you don’t have that, it doesn’t matter what kind of organization you are, you won’t be able to be successful. You name it. Any organization. So, it’s extremely important to have people that believe in you that are looking for your success to be able to win races and eventually winning championships. So, I’m just very happy and very fortunate and very blessed to be in this position. And I can tell you I’m as excited as can be to start 2021.”
WOULD YOU CALL THIS THE BEST OPPORTUNITY YOU’VE EVER HAD IN NASCAR?
“Yes. Definitely. It’s a combination of the people behind me. It’s a combination of believing in myself. It’s a combination of experience in myself. So yes.”
THIS IS THE FIRST TIME FOR TRACKHOUSE RACING IN THE CUP SERIES. WHAT DO YOU EXPECT FROM JUSTIN MARKS AND PITBULL? AND IN WHAT WAY IS THIS CORPORATION GOING TO BE UNLIKE ANY OTHER YOU’VE HAD IN NASCAR RACING?
“As a driver, the last thing you want is to be moving from team to team and from manufacturer to manufacturer. But sometimes it’s just out of control of the driver or the team. Different situations are different experiences. It’s very difficult to be in that position because if you think about it, every single team that is successful in NASCAR is not a new team. It’s a team that has been together for years. And it takes time to build that, to build that relationship, to build that understanding, to build that I know what he wants, I know what he needs. It takes time especially when most of the race tracks that we go to, we only go once a year. By the time that you learn something, maybe the next time you’re going to try is going to be the next year. So, it’s a process. With that being said, I have learned a lot as well, as a driver. I was ready to go to the Cup Series in 2017. Talent-wise, I was ready because I’m very fortunate that I’m talented to drive race cars. Experience-wise, I was not. I didn’t have the right people around me telling me what to do and what not to do. I don’t have a racing family behind me that can tell me what to do and what not to do. I had to learn all those things in that way by myself. But with that being said, I’m very lucky that I still have a very good opportunity with an amazing team; with way more experience than a few years ago, and with a very good opportunity to start the season very competitive. The No. 99 Chevy in Daytona is going to have as good a shot to win the race as any other team. And that’s something that puts a huge smile on my face.”
YOUR CREW CHIEF, TRAVIS MACK, HAS BEEN BEHIND THE SCENES BUILDING THIS OPERATION AND GETTING YOU GUYS READY FOR THE DAYTONA 500. WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT WORKING WITH HIM AND WHAT IS YOUR OUTLOOK KNOWING THAT HE HAS EXPERIENCE AS A CREW CHIEF?
“Working with Travis has been a lot of fun. I like Travis. He understands me personally. He works very hard. And he takes care of a lot of details. He knows about everything that is going on and I really like that. I feel like Travis and I really have a future together. I really like the way that he sees things, how cool he is, how relaxed he is about everything, and he knows that we have a big challenge ahead of us, and he’s not afraid of it. And I like that. I think we’re going to do some good things together and of course we’re going to have a lot of fun.”
YOU WERE FRONT PAGE NEWS IN CHARLOTTE YESTERDAY ABOUT DOING THE WORK WITH ANIMALS AND DOGS. HOW IMPORTANT IS THIS FOR YOU TO HAVE A LIFE OUTSIDE OF THE RACE TRACK, AND DOES THAT BALANCE HELP YOUR PROFESSIONAL LIFE?
“You hit it right on the point. It’s extremely good to help others and to help animals and to do good things for nature. I love that. I’m huge into animals and grew up like that. It’s funny that you asked me this question. Just last night I was talking with my father about a dog that’s for adoption in Mexico. My sister actually works a lot with different organizations to help animals to find homes and stuff like that. This is a dog that has three legs. Well, two legs and one arm. This dog has been trying to find a home for over a month. My dad has right now over ten dogs in the shop. We are very fortunate to have a big piece of land and have a lot of dogs and they are everywhere, and they have a house and everything. I’m talking to my father and you know he wants it and he loves this dog. Let’s bring this dog home with the other dogs and take care of it and make it happy. So, it’s these kinds of things, just to help animals. It’s just makes you feel so good. For me personally, it reminds me where I came from. And that’s super important. It makes my life more stable. I love racing. That’s my passion. But, if you do everything racing, eventually it’s going to get overwhelming. So, it’s very important to have a balance. For me, family, animals, cars, is my balance and I love sharing that. I love helping and I hope I can continue to do it for a long time.”
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