Daniel Suárez – Driver, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
START: 23RD
FINISH: 25TH
POINTS: 7TH
Daniel Suárez, driver of the No. 7 Freeway Insurance Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Spire Motorsports, left Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas, with a seventh-place ranking in the driver championship point standings following a third-place finish in Stage 2 in the DuraMax Texas Grand Prix Powered by RelaDyne that rewarded the Cup Series veteran with eight bonus points on the day.
After starting 23rd for Sunday’s race, and after struggling to advance his position into the top 20 during Stage 1, crew chief Ryan Sparks elected to bring Suárez to pit road prior to the stage break for fresh tires and adjustments. The decision placed Suárez in the ninth position for the beginning of Stage 2, ahead of the top-10 finishers in the previous stage.
Despite a lack of rear grip, Suárez charged forward once Stage 2 began and raced his way into the top five by Lap 24. The Freeway Insurance driver advanced as high as third before the stage end. After pitting at the break for additional adjustments, Suárez started the stage in 28th and pushed into the top 20 before a caution on Lap 76 slowed the field. An incident on the Lap-79 restart caused right front damage to the No. 7 Chevy and relegated Suárez to a 25th-place result.
Daniel’s Post-Race Comments
“The day went as expected. We had a decent Freeway Insurance Chevrolet for the short runs, but during the middle and long runs, it was tough, the car just wanted to stroll. It was difficult to get the tires to perform. Both the front and rear were struggling. We definitely have a bit of work to do to improve our road course package, but I’m looking forward to heading to Phoenix now.”
Michael McDowell – Driver, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
START: 6TH
FINISH: 5TH
POINTS: 9TH
Michael McDowell brought home his first top-five finish of the 2026 season behind the wheel of the No. 71 Katz Coffee Chevrolet. The veteran racer picked up a venue-best fifth-place finish in the NASCAR Cup Series’ first road-course event of the season at COTA.
After topping the leaderboard in Saturday’s practice session, McDowell qualified sixth for the DuraMax Grand Prix Powered by RelaDyne. The Glendale, Ariz., native worked his way into the top five, and team elected to maximize their stage points with a finish of third at the green-and-white checkered flag of Stage 1. A full-service pit stop at the stage break placed McDowell in 20th for the restart, behind teams that chose to pit under green-flag conditions. The father-of-five took the green flag from the 20th position on Lap 28 and was back in the top 10 just nine laps later.
The team switched up their pit strategy, bringing McDowell to pit road prior to the stage break and ultimately earning a starting spot of seventh for the final stint of Sunday’s race at COTA. With McDowell maintaining position inside the top 10, crew chief Travis Peterson planned for a one-stop strategy to allow his driver to run a handful of laps longer than his competitors. McDowell took the race lead on Lap 71 and maintained control until pitting under caution on Lap 76. McDowell’s was the first car off pit road but lined up 15th behind those that chose not the make a stop. With the freshest tires on track and 18 laps remaining to the checkered flag, the Katz Coffee driver worked his way back to the fifth position to take home the No. 71 team’s first top-five finish of the 2026 season.
Michael’s Post-Race Comments
“Overall, the No. 71 Katz Coffee Chevrolet was good. We didn’t need that last caution. We were running long there and I don’t know how the math would have worked out, but I think we would have had a good shot of having better tires over everyone else at the end. So, that caution really hurt us. We restarted outside of the top 10, so to get back up into the top five is a solid day for this team. But we’re not looking for solid days, we’re looking for wins. It’s definitely a step in the right direction.”
Carson Hocevar – Driver, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
START: 12TH
FINISH: 31ST
POINTS: 10TH
Carson Hocevar, driver of Spire Motorsports’ No. 77 Chili’s Ride the ‘Dente Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, maintained his top-10 position in the NASCAR Cup Series driver point standings after a trying day in Sunday’s DuraMax Texas Grand Prix Powered by RelaDyne at COTA
After qualifying 12th, the Portage, Mich., native held the 13th position for a majority of the opening 20-lap stint, eventually slipping to 16th after battling a tight-handling Chevy through the course’s left-hand turns. Several competitors elected to pit prior to the conclusion of the stage while the No. 77 team chose to stay on track to take the green-and-white checkered flag in ninth, collecting a pair of stage points.
Following pit stops ahead of Stage 2, Hocevar restarted 28th behind drivers who had previously pitted. The next 25 laps were impacted by a lack of overall grip for the 23-year-old driver, causing him to slip to 32nd by the end of the second stage on Lap 45. Hocevar began the third and final stage in the 23rd position, but struggled with balance issues regardless of adjustments made during scheduled pit stops. An incident with two laps remaining in the event resulted in a loss of track position and a 31st-place finish.
Carson’s Post-Race Comments
“Tough way to end the day. The Chili’s Ride The ‘Dente Camaro looked super good, but we just couldn’t get the balance where I wanted it. We started off the season with speed and now we get to head to Phoenix where we were able to show that off last year. The No. 77 boys will build another strong Chevy and we’ll be back up front.”
Up Next…
The NASCAR Cup Series season heads west to Phoenix Raceway on Sunday, March 8. The 312-lap race at the one-mile D-shaped dogleg oval in the desert will be televised live on FS1 at 3:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT).
The fourth of 36 points-paying races on the Cup Series calendar will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
To stay up-to-date on all the latest news and exclusive content, follow Spire Motorsports on Facebook, X and Instagram, and visit Spire-Motorsports.com.
About Spire Motorsports …
Spire Motorsports fields full-time entries in the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series and Interstate Batteries High Limit Racing.
The team, co-owned by longtime NASCAR industry executive Jeff Dickerson and TWG Motorsports CEO Dan Towriss, earned its inaugural NASCAR Cup Series victory in its first full season of competition when Justin Haley took the checkered flag in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway on July 7, 2019. Less than three years later, William Byron drove Spire Motorsports’ No. 7 Chevrolet Silverado to its inaugural NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series win on April 7, 2022, at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. The team’s most recent win came on Feb. 21, 2026, when Kyle Busch took the checkered flag in the Fr8 Racing 208 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
In 2026, Spire Motorsports will campaign the Nos. 7, 71 and 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1s in the NASCAR Cup Series and the Nos. 7 and 77 Chevrolet Silverado RSTs in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. The Mooresville, N.C., organization will also field the No. 77 410 sprint car in Interstate Batteries High Limit Racing competition.
