SUAREZ BECOMES FIRST FOREIGN CHAMPION IN NASCAR

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Suarez burning out after winning Championship

Austin Travis

Austin Travis

Suarez burning out after winning Championship

Daniel Suarez won last weekend’s Ford Ecoboost 300 at Homestead to become the first foreign driver to win a championship in any of the three national series.  “The very first time that I was going to move to the States, a lot of people told me it was going to be difficult because I was a Mexican driver, and nobody else made it happen in the past,” Suarez said. “Right now, honestly, I can tell that to be a Mexican driver, Latin American driver, is something positive.”  It was Suarez’s third win of 2016, and the one that gave him the Championship.  Suarez began racing go-karts at a young age in Mexico and moved to North Carolina as a teenager to begin a career in NASCAR’s National Series.  He had to teach himself English by watching cartoons on television and moved through NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity program to get a ride with Joe Gibbs Racing.  “It was a very tough transition, Suarez said.  “My family was a huge part of it.  My friends.  I was by myself without a lot of support, honestly, without money, without a sponsor at the time, and then I had the opportunity with the Drive for Diversity.”  Elliott Sadler finished third in the race, and second of championship contenders.  “This one is hard to swallow. We had a really good season, ran good all season long, won some races. We have a strong race team. I hate coming up this short for them.”  To see the 2017 season opener at Daytona, tune in to FS1 at 3:30 PM ET for the Powershares QQQ 300.