What’s Happening?

Ever since his win at Atlanta, Daniel Suarez has struggled mightily in 2024. It’s been so difficult, that he made an apology video to his fanbase following the Darlington race. Has Daniel Suarez really been that bad in 2024?

• Daniel Suarez currently sits 18th in points, the lowest of any race winner so far this year. He’s only in the Playoffs thanks to that one win, which came in a photo finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
• It is critical for Danel Suarez to do well this season. He’s in the last year of his contract at Trackhouse, a team with 5 drivers under contract.
• Fans are beginning to grow restless with Daniel Suarez. However, has he been that bad in 2024?

Eric Estepp also dove into some of these stats in a recent episode of Out of the Groove. Watch that here:

Daniel Suarez’s 2024 Season

The highlight of Suarez’s season came in the second race of the season. He won the Ambetter Health 400 at Atlanta by 0.003 seconds, now the fourth closest finish in NASCAR history. Without this win, the dialogue around Daniel Suarez would be quite different.

Since that win at Atlanta, he’s only recorded 1 top-10 finish, a 5th at Texas. He’s finished outside of the top-20 6 times in this 11-race span. Here is his statistics since that win.

If those stats were stretched out over a full season, Suarez would have his worst statistical season at Trackhouse since his first season there, 2021. However, things have been especially bad in the last eight races, where he has only two top-20 finishes. These are his stats from that stretch

Keeping that up over a 36-race calendar would give Suarez his worst statistical season since he was with the Gaunt Brothers in 2020. That team doesn’t exist anymore.

It’s been a bad stretch, and there’s no way around it. However, is it that bad when we compare it to his teammate? How bad has Suarez’s season been compared to his teammate, Ross Chastain?

Comparing Suarez to Ross Chastain

Ross Chastain has also quietly struggled in 2024. He currently sits 10th in the points, which would be his worst points finish since he joined Trackhouse. How bad has he been compared to Suarez in the same 11-race stretch since Suarez last won?

Obviously, Chastain has still put together a much better season than Suarez. However, over the most recent 8 races, Chastain has seen a dip in performance just like Suarez.

Yes, Chastain has struggled some, but, not nearly to the level Suarez has. While Trackhouse has taken an overall step back as an organization, Suarez shouldn’t be struggling as much as he is given his equipment.

It’s been a tough year for Daniel Suarez. Will he find the speed necessary to save his season, and potentially his ride come Playoff time?