Daniel Suarez was overcome by emotion after claiming a thrilling NASCAR Cup Series victory in Charlotte last weekend, but that was only the beginning of a very special week.
The 34-year-old Spire Motorsports star came out on top on the night that the sport came together for the first time to pay tribute to the late, great Kyle Busch.
Two-time Cup Series champion Busch had died three days earlier due to pneumonia and sepsis, and the tragedy meant it was an evening charged with emotion for the Coca-Cola 600.
It was fitting that Suarez, himself mentored by the great Busch early in his career, should be the driver to take the checkered flag and he spoke beautifully about their relationship postrace.
There would be more memories to come though as Suarez and his triumphant team returned to their shop, which just happens to be the one-time home of the old Kyle Busch Motorsports team. It was a special week for Suarez with constant memories of ‘Rowdy’, literally everywhere.
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A week with memories of 'Rowdy' everywhere
He said: “Obviously it was a lot of fun to celebrate with the No. 7 team and everyone at Spire Motorsports. It was a very special win. To be able to bring the car full of confetti, along with the trophy, the ring and all those things, back to the KBM shop, I would say it was the highlight of the week. It was very, very special. I felt like I enjoyed it a lot and the entire team enjoyed it a lot.
“We celebrated the victory for a few days, but now it’s time to move on, right? We have another task today and tomorrow.”
While Suarez spent much of the past week thinking of his great mentor, lost too soon at the age of 41, he also has a new project of his own to focus on.
Suarez now has a new project to focus on
“Yesterday, we were in LA for the premiere of my documentary, which I can’t wait for you guys to see it hopefully very soon,” he revealed.
“It was very special to see it on the big screen with a lot of friends and people that helped make this project happen. That was a lot of fun.
"We flew on a red eye here [to Nashville], which is why I’m a zombie right now. But yeah, it was great and I’m looking forward to hopefully get on track here in a couple hours.”
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