By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer
Several months of contract negotiations ultimately resulted in Daniel Suarez and Stewart-Haas Racing parting ways after the season-finale.
Reports have current NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Cole Custer replacing Suarez in the No. 41 Ford Mustang.
Suarez joined SHR earlier this season after a two-year stint in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series with Joe Gibbs Racing. 2019 marked a career season for the Monterrey, Mexico native. Suarez earned four top-five and 11 top-10 finishes with SHR.
“I’m here to confirm the bad news that some of you guys already know and some of you guys are trying to figure out that I won’t be back next year in the 41 car,” Suarez explained. “I was as shocked as you guys are, late last night. I promise you that I worked my heart off to make this happen to try to put everything together, and the team did as well.
“We were just not able to put all of the funding and sponsors together on time. We were extremely close, pretty much there. It just wasn’t quite enough, and we ran out of time. I am extremely disappointed at the outcome but it’s the way it is sometimes. I’m sure something else will be waiting for me.”
After he narrowly missed making the playoffs for the first time, Suarez has a 16-point gap over Jimmie Johnson for 17th in points. He was the only SHR driver to fail to make the playoff grid.
Stewart-Haas Racing made a statement shortly after Suarez revealed the news:
“Daniel Suarez is the epitome of class. He is a world-class race car driver and an even better person who has represented Stewart-Haas Racing and its partners extremely well. We have much respect and admiration for Daniel, and genuinely wish him nothing but the best in his future endeavors.”
The 2016 NASCAR Xfinity Series Champion spent four full-time seasons, two in Xfinity, and two in Cup, with JGR prior to joining SHR. Suarez was thrust into the spotlight when he replaced Carl Edwards after his sudden retirement prior to the 2017 Cup Series season.
As Suarez enters free agency, he has eight top-five and 32 top-10 finishes in his Premier Series career. He also has two pole positions.
Before ending his tenure at SHR, Suarez made sure to thank them for the opportunity they gave him:
“I want to thank everyone at Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford Performance, Haas Automation, and of course my current sponsors, Arris, Coca-Cola, and Tracfone for all of the love they have given me.
“When I moved to this country in 2011, I had a dream. That dream was to race in NASCAR, win races, and win championships. I have accomplished that, but not in the Cup Series. I’m sure I will, but we have to work extremely hard to get back on our feet and put all of the pieces in the right place.”