NASCAR Cup Series
Phoenix Raceway
Team Chevy Driver Quotes
October 17, 2026
Daniel Suarez, driver of the No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet, met with the media in advance of the NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying session at Phoenix Raceway.
Media Availability Quotes:
First off, Daniel, congratulations on signing with Spire Motorsports for next year. Do you mind just talking about that?
“Yeah, I mean I think it was expected, right, for everyone. Obviously, the team has been doing a good job, and you just don’t see every day that you put a team and a driver that were struggling the year before and you put them together and you start just getting results right away. So that was very, very positive. Obviously, we’ve been working a lot throughout the year to make our group better and better, and we have made some progress. We still have obviously a long ways to go from where we want to be, not just as a team on the 7 team, but also as an organization with Spire Motorsports, but I believe that we have the pieces to be able to make great things with this organization. So yeah, happy where we’re at and excited where we’re heading.”
Last year when you signed the deal, I guess the vibe was sort of like, okay, this was a late deal and we’re not really sure how Daniel’s career is going to go. Now having pen to paper, signing the deal, just kind of talk about the difference between this year and last year and how you feel?
“Yeah, you know, I had dinner with Jeff Dickerson a while back. It’s been like four months ago when we started having the contract discussions. This deal has been done for a little while. It’s so funny because he made a comment that made me laugh. He said to me — man, last year, you and Spire were like the last two kids in the dance floor that didn’t have a mate, you know, they didn’t have a partner. And we were like, oh, might as well just dance together. I thought it was very funny. And now, obviously, it’s a completely different game, right? Like I can’t remember, I think last year, I was in the high 20s in the points standings and the 7 team were like 30th or something like that. It wasn’t very good, but there was a lot of work that went into it during the off-season.
I have always known what I’m capable of, and I also knew what Spire Motorsports was doing, especially with the 77 and Carson (Hocevar.) So in my mind, I’m like, okay, this group has potential, we just need to put the pieces of the puzzle together. Obviously right now, we’re happy, but not satisfied. We always want more. But if in the beginning of the year, you were telling us, ‘Hey Daniel, this is how the year is going to go — you guys are going to have several top-10s, top-15s, be qualifying up front, win a race, be in The Chase’, we’re going to be pretty happy. But obviously as an organization, we’re greedy people and we always want more. Right now, even though we are competitive, we want more. We want to be able to have a real shot for a championship in the near future. And for that, obviously we have to continue to grow and that’s where we are. But overall, obviously I’m excited. The team is doing a good job, and hopefully we can continue to grow together.”
You talked already right there about Jeff Dickerson and how the relationship started. I’m just curious, how has that relationship evolved now here after signing this new deal?
“Yeah, I mean, like I said, a year ago from right now, there were not many options either for me or for him. So in a way we, we took what we had, even though that I saw potential and they also saw previous potential in myself. So right now, it’s a completely different story, right? We are a solid team. The last month, we’ve been finishing in the top-15. We’re a strong team, and that’s not a surprise. If we qualify in the top-five today, I don’t think anyone is going to be surprised. That’s good, but we want more, obviously. We want to continue to put the bar higher and higher. Right now, we’re already having conversations about what we need to do better in the off-season for next year. What are our strengths and weaknesses of this year heading into next year. I believe, like I said, that we have had a strong year, but we want more. Those are the conversations, right? Like, okay, we’re happy where we’re at, but how can we make it even better? To be able to beat the Gibbs, the Penske, the Hendrick cars, we’re going to need one more step or two, so how can we make that next step? Those are the conversations that we’re having now.”
This week, you got to visit three Phoenix schools, which is something that’s very near and dear to your heart. Just tell me a little bit more about that experience and why it’s so important for you to keep doing this.
“Yeah, I mean, I’ve been doing this for a while. I’ve been visiting schools for at least five years. And especially I know that I can make a bigger impact in Hispanic schools, right? Because that’s who I am.
And listen, winning races, winning championships, being competitive on the racetrack; that’s amazing and that’s my priority. But if I don’t take advantage of my platform and the journey that I have had to get to this point, coming from Mexico, without speaking the language and all these different barriers I’ve had to go through; I feel like it would be a little bit of a waste. So a handful of years ago, I decided to use what I have built to inspire the next generations and to share a little bit of my journey, and that’s what I’ve been doing. You know, like you mentioned, on Thursday, I went to a few schools. Yesterday, I was in the Mexican consulate and there were actually another 40 or 50 students in there from high school. So for me, that’s special. That’s one of those things that I couldn’t do 10 years ago, but I can now, and I have to take advantage of the journey and the story that I have built with time.”
Right now, are you working toward next year, or do you still care about where you finish in points?
“Oh, of course I care, Bob (Pockrass). Of course, I care. I would be lying to you if I told you that we’re going to win the championship, right? But I believe that we still have a lot to fight for. I mean, like I said, the last four races, we have finished in the top-15. Is that what we want? No, we want a little bit more than that. But we’re working hard. We’re pushing hard. We’re trying to maximize our potential. I believe that if we do everything right in the next month, I believe that top-10 in points is achievable for us. Very achievable. So we just have to continue to maximize.
With that being said, also, I would say 10% of the time that we spend during the week is about what do we need to do as a company to be able to go to the next level? It’s only 10%. It’s not 80%. So this year is still very, very important, and it’s very important for me. I believe that as a driver, you are just as good as your last race, so I want to close this season as strong as possible. And then, we can put full focus into the next.”
Next week is Talladega. What went through your mind when you saw Carson (Hocevar) win his first Cup race and is doing that celebration? Are you surprised? Are you like, this guy is nuts? What was your feeling? What was your reaction to all that and all that’s kind of happened around that guy since?
“You know, I was extremely happy for Carson (Hocevar). Extremely happy for the 77 team. Very, very happy for Spire Motorsports. Carson deserved that win. He did a great job.
About his celebration, you know, it’s so funny that you asked me that question. I can actually pull some pictures and videos of this, but my very first victory in NASCAR Mexico back around 2010 or 2009. I won in Mexico City at the Hermano Rodriguez, where we raced, and I didn’t know what to do. I knew I was such a small kid that I could drive outside the car, and I did exactly the same thing. I can’t remember if I was going backwards like he was, but on the front straightaway, I was driving and hanging like halfway out (laughs). I thought it was very funny. I only mentioned that to Julia because I wasn’t going to make a big deal, that was his moment. But it was very funny that I did something similar 15 years ago.”
What have you learned from Michael (McDowell) and Carson (Hocevar) as teammates in year one at Spire Motorsports?
“I learned that they are extremely different from each other, and I’m not saying that’s a bad thing. They’re just extremely different. And I believe that, honestly, I came to Spire Motorsports at a perfect time because if you think about, Carson (Hocevar) is in his low 20s, I’m in my mid-30s, and Michael is in his low 40s. So we are three different generations, completely different. Sometimes, I felt that the gap was too big between Michael and Carson in the way that they think and the way that they were operating, and I feel like I came into the picture in a perfect moment to kind of like connect the dots and it has worked very well. I believe that I have in me a lot of Michael and I have in me a lot of Carson, as well, so that’s why I feel like I’ve been able to help the entire team to connect the dots.
And like I said, I’m not saying that in a bad way. I believe that Michael has a lot of assets and a lot of strengths. The same thing with Carson. But they are different. They’re very, very different. There are a lot of things that Michael does way better than Carson, and there are a lot of things that Carson does way better than Michael. So, for me to be able to learn those things and to be able to communicate with both of them, has been fun.”
With increased horsepower at this track, does it change the way you drive the car and can you feel it?
“It doesn’t really change much with the way that you drive the car. You can definitely feel it, but we raced this package earlier this year, so we already have, in a way, experienced what we are going to have. With the way that you shift on the back straightaway, it’s a little bit different now with more horsepower. You’re having to shift to fifth a little bit more, where before, we stayed in fourth a little bit longer.
But yeah, I think it’s going to be fun. It’s going to be a little bit warmer tomorrow, it’s supposed to be at least, than the last time we were here, so it should be a fun race.”
In the spring, IndyCar was here, as well. They put some stuff on the track, kind of added some more grip maybe with them running. Do you think there’s anything different here with just O’Reilly’s, Trucks and ARCA?
“Yeah, I think so. The rubber that the IndyCar guys put down already with those different tires is a little different, but I don’t remember. I don’t think we were affected by that, but the O’Reilly cars may have. I can’t remember how it worked last time here, but I don’t remember us being too affected by that, but the O’Reilly cars definitely did.
I miss those guys, to be honest. I think it’s a lot of fun to have the double with the IndyCar guys. I think it’s a lot of fun to watch those guys and to see them around. Hopefully next year, we can do it again. I think it’s a great thing for them, for us, and for the fans.”
Daniel, you mentioned visiting the three schools here in Phoenix, and then you also went down to the Fan Fest downtown Phoenix. What can we do to bridge the gap to be able to bring more kids to be able to have that experience?
“Yeah, first of all, I really want to give a lot of credit to Latasha, the president of Phoenix Raceway, because she does an amazing job. She takes it personal, right? She’s not just the president of Phoenix Raceway, but also she’s from this area, and she’s always willing to go the extra mile to help and support the community. Actually, we gave away hundreds of tickets to the schools that we were at on Thursday for some of those kids to come for the weekend. Things like this, trying to build different platforms and different ways to have these young kids to interact with all the different positions that we have in the sport. That’s something I was telling the kids. I’m very blessed, I’m very fortunate, that I’m one of the faces of the sport as a driver, but there is so many different positions in the sport: from PR, mechanics, engineers, designing, you name it. I can almost guarantee you that there is a position for everything that you can maybe think of. So that’s, I think, something that’s very important, and I feel like we just have to continue to work in building these different mechanisms, different platforms, to give awareness to these young adults, especially from high school and middle school, that are starting to make different decisions on what they want to do in their lives. Like I said, I have a huge amount of respect for Latasha because I truly believe that she does an amazing job with this racetrack and this community to always go the extra mile.”
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