DANIEL SUAREZ: THE 🇲🇽 MAKING NASCAR HISTORY

Summary

LA PLATICA: Daniel Suarez – The 🇲🇽 Making NASCAR History

Podcast: LA PLATICA (Sonoro)
Episode: 249
Air Date: June 1, 2026
Hosts: Sebastián "Sebas" Robles & Josh Leyva
Guest: Daniel Suárez

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Episode Overview

This episode of LA PLATICA features NASCAR superstar Daniel Suárez, the first Mexican-born driver to win a NASCAR Cup Series race. The hosts dive deep into Daniel's inspiring journey from a humble upbringing in Monterrey, Mexico, to breaking barriers in the world of American motorsport. The conversation explores the grit, perseverance, and cultural pride that define Daniel's path, alongside his recent victory at the Coca-Cola 600 and his growing impact as a role model for Latinos everywhere.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Breaking Barriers: Daniel’s Early Journey (08:42 - 17:15)

• Humble Origins: Daniel shares how he grew up in a working-class family—his father ran a mechanic shop and his mother was a stay-at-home mom.
  • “I wasn't born in a family of racing, of sports, or money... I was only 12 years old. So since a very young age, I had to learn how to work in the car and... find sponsors.” (09:16)
• Early Sacrifices & Hardships: His father's sacrifices — selling his business and mortgaging the family home — along with Daniel’s own drive to work harder than wealthier competitors, shaped his relentless mentality.
• Finding Opportunity: Getting a shot through a customer from his dad’s shop, but quickly realizing the immense financial and cultural hurdles of motorsport—compared to soccer, racing is expensive and inaccessible for many.
  • “If we want to play soccer right now, we buy a ball, we go to a park, and that's it. We play right... In racing, it's not like that.” (10:56)
• Lessons in Adversity: Daniel reflects on how his perceived “bad luck” became his greatest advantage later in life:
  • “Life was preparing me. I didn't know at the time, right? But life was preparing me for something bigger...” (11:54)

2. Entering NASCAR: The Cultural & Technical Hurdles (14:42 - 19:16)

• Coming to the U.S.: Daniel arrived at 19 with no English and no security net.
  • “At first, I couldn't even rent an apartment because I didn't have Social Security... There were a lot of struggles.” (11:47)
• The NASCAR Learning Curve: He explains that NASCAR focuses on oval tracks, which are rare in Mexico. Adjusting to racing styles, rules, and upping his skills to compete against American-born drivers was a major challenge.
  • “Going left in ovals is extremely difficult. It's very, very difficult, man. I'm telling you from my own experience.” (16:03)
• Changing Perceptions: Daniel notes how many people doubted that a Mexican could succeed in NASCAR, but he was determined to prove it could be done.
  • “Somebody has to change that. Maybe that somebody’s me.” (19:42)

3. Mental Barriers, Representation, & Historic Wins (19:16 - 24:00)

• Opening the Door: Daniel takes pride in paving the way for other international drivers:
  • “For me, that has a huge value, you know, that I was able to open this path for future generations.” (20:51)
• Power of Belief: The hosts compare Daniel’s journey to the “breaking the four-minute mile” story, emphasizing the importance of mental hurdles.
  • “If we believe that it's impossible, it's going to be impossible. But if we truly believe that we can do it... it's going to happen.” (21:33) – Daniel
• Winning the Coca-Cola 600: Daniel details his obsession with this grueling race (600 miles) and why it’s especially meaningful—his family travels from Mexico to attend, and it’s a NASCAR crown jewel.
  • “That’s the one race that I have family with. So for me, it’s been very special.” (22:57)
• Physical Demands: Drivers burn up to 3,500 calories and endure cockpit temperatures up to 140°F.
  • “Inside the car, in the middle of summer,... it gets up to 140 degrees.” (66:01)

4. Race Day Rituals, Mindset, and Visualization (24:59 - 32:15)

• Routine: Daniel uses his “whoop” tracker to monitor recovery and creates a precise eating/sleep schedule.
• Mental Preparation: He employs a ritual of three steps: remembering past struggles, visualizing successes, and focusing on race-specific strategy.
  • “Remember this where I came from... visualize all my successes... then put myself in race mode.” (28:58)
• Switching to ‘Killer Mode’: He draws inspiration from athletes like Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant—on race day, he’s fiercely competitive and singularly focused.
  • “You have to be a nice guy... but when it's game on, it's game on.” (31:44)
  • “When you get inside the car, I'm the selfish person that you can meet, and you have to be like that.” (31:13)

5. Handling Pressure & Historic Homecoming (35:06 - 38:27)

• Racing in Mexico: Daniel recalls the emotional experience of racing (and winning) at home, feeling the crowd inside his car for the first time:
  • “It’s the first time ever in my career that when I’m driving, I can hear the people outside. The first time ever.” (37:01)
  • “I have to go out there and have fun. Yeah, have fun and be present.” (36:19)
• Career Longevity: NASCAR drivers can race into their 40s if they take care of themselves.

6. Legacy, Impact & Media Representation (41:09 - 44:21)

• Documentary: Surprise encounter with Wilmer Valderrama led to a documentary on Daniel’s journey, capturing the full-circle moment of returning to Mexico as a champion.
  • “...documentary that... told the full story, you know, the full circle.” (42:34)
• Car Culture: Daniel and the hosts bond over their love of cars, with Daniel describing his extensive collection, especially vintage Volkswagens and Porsches.

7. Fun, Personal Insights & Lighthearted Moments (46:48 - 64:54)

• Cars & Daily Life: Daniel talks about his car collection (18+ cars, big garage), being a terrible passenger, and sharing car passions with his wife.
• Pop Culture: Voicing “Danny Swerves” in Cars 3 was a career highlight (“I’m probably one of the biggest Cars movies fans ever.” – 56:07).
• Movie Opinions: Loves Days of Thunder for realistic NASCAR depiction, dislikes Talladega Nights (“To me, it's a little disrespectful. To the sport and to the drivers.” – 57:32)
• Food & Travel: Favorite foods are tamales, carne asada, and sushi. Loves Japanese car culture and food. NASCAR season is February–November, leaving little downtime.

8. The Business Side: Teams, Transitions & Leadership (74:48 - 79:22)

• Team Dynamics: Daniel recently switched to Spire Motorsports, emphasizing the importance of leadership and a winning culture.
  • “The most important part in a race team is the leadership. Everything comes from the top.” (76:08)
• Career Advice: “When you love what you do, you don’t have to be looking at the clock... I just love racing so much that I just don’t mind it.” (64:54)

9. Historic Finishes & Emotional Legacy (80:43 - 85:58)

• Winning by Inches: Daniel recounts the record-setting 3-wide finish in Atlanta (2024), winning by .003 seconds:
  • “It was so tight... That’s the closest finish 3-wide in NASCAR history ever.” (81:41)
• Tributes: Dedicates recent wins to his friend Kyle, honoring the legacy and support legends provided him (“...he decided to help this Mexican kid that could barely speak English.” – 85:45)
• Pride in Representation:
  • “The biggest pride and the biggest gift that I have is to be Mexican and... represent Mexico and Latin America in NASCAR.” (80:07)

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Memorable Quotes

• Daniel Suárez:
  • “Many, many times I thought, man, maybe that somebody’s me.” (00:00, 19:42)
  • “If we believe that it's impossible, it's going to be impossible.” (21:33)
  • “You have to be a nice guy... but when it's game on, it's game on.” (31:44)
  • “For me... I have to go out there and have fun. Yeah, have fun and be present.” (36:19)
  • “The biggest pride and the biggest gift that I have is to be Mexican and... represent Mexico and Latin America in NASCAR.” (80:07)
  • “For the rest of the competitors, I'm gonna kick their butt for Kyle. I love you, brother.” (85:58)
• Sebas:
  • “Just being Latinos ourselves and being able to have somebody that we can look to in a sport that is primarily, you know, white, it's just so surreal, man.” (05:50)
• Josh:
  • “Sometimes you just need that lane. You just need to know that it is possible. And you being that lane, that life for people. I'm getting emotional talking about it, bro.” (21:14)

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Timestamps for Major Segments

| Segment | Timestamp | |---------------------------------------------------|----------------| | Opening reflections on breaking barriers | 00:00 – 00:46 | | Daniel's origin story & early racing life | 08:42 – 14:42 | | NASCAR learning curve, cultural/technical hurdles | 14:42 – 19:16 | | Representation and opening the path for others | 19:16 – 21:04 | | Mindset and belief as growth engine | 21:04 – 24:00 | | Rituals and competitive mentality | 24:59 – 32:15 | | Homecoming: Racing in Mexico | 35:06 – 38:27 | | Media and documentary | 41:09 – 44:21 | | Car culture & collection | 46:48 – 49:56 | | The business of NASCAR teams | 74:48 – 79:22 | | Finishing by .003s & emotional significance | 80:43 – 85:58 | | Reflections on legacy & representation | 80:02 – 80:07 |

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Notable & Lighthearted Moments

• Comedic gift exchange: The hosts give Daniel a gift basket with Mexican candy and a special engraved Don Julio bottle (“Don Julio 600 champ.” – 07:11)
• Voicing NASCAR's “Danny Swerves” in Cars 3 (56:12)
• Debate on Fast & Furious vs. Talladega Nights: Daniel asserts the former is fun, but the latter is disrespectful to pro drivers. (57:08)
• Car talk: Daniel’s car passion dominates, from German classics to LA’s vibrant scene.
• Cross-cultural food talk: In-depth exchange on sushi in Japan and Monterrey culinary staples.

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Final Thoughts

Daniel Suárez’s journey is a testament to the power of resilience, cultural pride, and shattering stereotypes. His breakthrough in NASCAR not only rewrites what’s possible for Mexican athletes but also for all aspiring drivers from outside the U.S. The episode is inspiring, endearing, and often hilarious—revealing the drive and humility behind Daniel’s success, all while spotlighting the transformative impact of representation in sports.

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Follow Daniel Suárez on Instagram for updates on his racing career and to witness history in the making.

Next Race: Michigan – “We are gonna be hauling the mail in Michigan.” (86:27)

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Transcript

[A]

They used to tell me that there was no chance that a Mexican driver was going to be successful in NASCAR in the United States. And they used to think that it was just very difficult, that the opportunities were not really there and the path wasn't really there. And in my mind, I was like, somebody has to change that. And many, many times I thought, man, maybe that somebody's me. Something I love about sports is that you work so hard for so many years with absolutely nothing guaranteed, but that's just a perfect example. Like, in that particular moment, it's just another competitor, you know? And this is the way I think about it. And I remember having this conversation to my dad. He said that you or me, I don't want to be me. Yeah, of course.

[B]

Guys, the World cup is here, and we want to hook you up, all right? We want to make sure you're taken care of and you know exactly where to buy your tickets.

[C]

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[B]

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[C]

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[B]

You got it.

[C]

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[B]

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[C]

2. 1.

[B]

La Platica 10 for 10% off your ticket to purchase. Go on, Tiki. But, guys, it's not just about the World cup, right? Maybe the World cup is not your cup of tea, all right?

[C]

Maybe you want to go to a

[B]

different kind of sporting event. Maybe you want to go to a concert. Maybe you want to see what's happening in your. In your local theater city. Siki has you covered 75,000 live events daily.

[C]

Daily?

[B]

What are we talking about daily? Am I not the coding?

[C]

Yeah, you know, like when you were like, La Platica 10. I'm going to tell you La Platica 10. You know, when you. Mom, I'm bored, blah, blah. Now it's like, you tell us, I'm bored. Se And Josh. Okay, we'll go on seatgeek.

[B]

We're going seatgeek. All right. Love you guys. Hope you guys enjoyed this episode. And we'll see you guys in 12.4 seconds.

[A]

I'm gonna use it.

[C]

Let me be honest. Every guest is a privilege. Do we want to go there, get jolly? Cause I'm on A podcast with Josh la. Yeah, you have too.

[B]

Ladies and gentlemen, let me just tell you guys, Tay Saluth is turning five years old. It's crazy to say that. It's crazy to think that you guys have been along for the ride this whole time. And, and I'm so very grateful for you guys. First of all, it's crazy that we've been able to make it to this milestone. But I also want to say thank you to you, pz, because you were a big part of, you know, the brand. The first time I ever talked about Salud was on La Platica. So this is a big moment.

[C]

Every time it's say Salud's birthday, it's always a special moment for us as well. And I'm just. I'm. I'm just here, man. And I'm just so happy for you and the brand, but I know you got something coming for the people.

[B]

Okay, look, I feel like we've kind of made it a tradition. This is exclusively only for La Platicar listeners, okay? Nobody else in the world is going to get this access. We're going to make sure that everybody who listens to La Platica gets 20% off site wide early access. It's a sale that we're going to be running for the week. But before the world does, I want to make sure that our viewers, our supporters get that. So go to tisalud.com, enter the promo code bday20 and get hooked up with all the Salud that you need. And that's including our new skinning beauty line that just dropped. I know a lot of you guys have been excited about it. This is your time to try it out.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

Hey, te salut. Happy birthday to you. B day 20.

[B]

B day 20, baby.

[C]

Let's go, baby.

[B]

Let's get it. Enjoy the episode, guys.

[A]

Episode 249 with Daniel Suarez. Wow. Wow.

[C]

I'm pretty sure everybody heard the name that was just spoken out loud. Ladies and gentlemen, bienvenidos a La Platica. Today to have our guest on. I want to introduce him, but before I want to say that it's. Today is my birthday. And the first regalo que arrecivido hoy is the presence of Daniel Suarez, our guest for today. And I got a little introduction for you as well. Daniel Suarez. Born in Monterrey, Mexico, he has become one of NASCAR's biggest success story stories. A former NASCAR Infinity series champion and the first Mexican born driver to win a NASCAR Cup Series race, Daniel has broken barriers while inspiring a new generation of Racers. Today, he continues competing at the highest level of stock car racing, proudly representing Mexico and the growing diversity of the sport. While I was saying that I got the chills, bro. Yeah. I hope I got all that right.

[B]

You got it all right.

[C]

I did it last night. So, Daniel Suarez, un plazertequi. Congratulations on all your success. Eresmas guapo in real life.

[B]

And muscular. I gave him a hug when he walked in the door and I was like, oh, my God.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Swole, bro.

[C]

So not only not only first Mexican born nascar, but honestly, probably like the. The number one bad boy heartthrob Mexican bad boy day.

[B]

Hey, he's engaged.

[C]

He's engaged. He's engaged.

[B]

I get it.

[C]

I get it. The truth is there. The truth is there. Daniel, man, I love that.

[B]

You're doing an amazing job, Daniel. The representation is incredible. We're honored, bro. It's. You are. You're somebody that we truly admire. And just being Latinos ourselves and being able to have somebody that we can look to in a sport that is primarily, you know, white, it's just so surreal, man. It's so surreal. So thank you so much for the representation. Thank you for being amazing. You just won the Coca Cola 600, right?

[A]

We.

[C]

Which is insane.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Wild. Wow.

[A]

I was planning all this, you know, all this stuff all along, you know.

[B]

Yeah, yeah.

[A]

I was going to win that race. I was going to come here with you guys. We're going to talk about it.

[C]

A confident. A confident man we love.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

So, honestly, we just want to start the podcast off with gifts. We have. We have a gift for you. Not just for winning the Coca Cola 600, but just for being Daniel Suarez. Like we.

[C]

Just for being born. Yes, yes, yes.

[A]

Is that Mexican candy?

[C]

Yes, it is, pretty much.

[B]

We got a little gift basket that we put together for you, Mr. Daniel Suarez.

[A]

Look at this, man.

[B]

Yes. So on behalf of la platica, my brand tastes. Salud. We have a little bottle for you. If you actually take a look at the bottle, if you want to grab it, there's a little note for that that you can read later.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

But we got a nice little engraving on the bottle as well, if you

[A]

want to check that out.

[C]

Yeah, yeah, A little further away, but no, no, no. Sassy Thomas, Daniel. Yeah, but you can have it as.

[A]

Oh, look at these, man. Don Julio 600 champ.

[C]

There you go.

[A]

Look at this. Yeah.

[C]

600 champions.

[B]

Yes, yes, yes, yes.

[A]

It's amazing.

[C]

Yeah. So.

[B]

And then I got you some electrolytes. This is my brand. Salut Flavor coming out with La me, that's going to be dropping soon. So that's a, a flavor there and some greens and other products to hopefully get you to win more races, man.

[A]

You know, I, I actually, I actually get drinks. Get, I actually get drinks every single morning after, after training and stuff. It's part of my routine, you know, trying to stay as healthy as possible. So thank you so much. And let me tell you something, man, I love your brand.

[B]

Oh, thank you.

[A]

You know, actually, have you seen my logo? His name is Pancho. It reminds me a lot of your logo. Oh, that's so cool. Super cool, man. To me, to me, you know, have, have the representation of our culture is everything.

[B]

That's what I'm about.

[A]

I love Salud. I'm already, I'm already a fan of the brand.

[B]

Okay, cool. I'm excited for you to try and maybe we can do something in the future.

[C]

Yeah, it's delicious. Honestly, I'm drinking it actually right now. And the cool thing about this, about taste, Salut. Is their inspirations for agua frescas.

[A]

Aguas frescas.

[C]

Yeah. So instead of me going and garando las flores y todo and going shopping for that and making it myself, it's just now quick access and it's delicious.

[A]

That's awesome, man. Really looking forward to try them out. Yeah, I appreciate you guys.

[B]

I want to start from the beginning.

[C]

Right.

[B]

Like Daniel, like what's, what's the origin story of your story?

[A]

Well, it's a long story because, you know, I was born and raised in Monterrey, Mexico, as you guys know. But the thing that happened in my life and in my career is that I wasn't born in a family of racing, of sports or money. You know, I grew up in a very humble family.

[C]

Sure.

[A]

My dad, my dad actually has a mechanic shop. You know, he, he works in cars for a living. That's the reason why I love car so much.

[B]

Oh, wow.

[A]

And, and my mom was a stay, stay home mom. And for me, you know, it was always my, my thing, you know, to go to a shop with my dad to work on cars. I wanted to be a mechanic. If you were asking me When I was 8 years old what you wanted to do when you grew up. I wanted to be a mechanic. And you know, eventually I had this passion about cars going fast and one of my dad's customer son was in racing and that's kind of like how everything started. He saw me there working on cars and they were going to a racetrack, they had like A little trailer with the go car. And they invited me to go check it out. And the following weekend, they were going every Saturday. They invited me to drive it, and I turned out to be very good. And then this guy, customer of my dad, had a conversation with my dad, say, your son is very good man. Has he ever driven anything? He said, no, anything. And that's kind of how everything started. This person convinced my dad to let you race, to let me race, and to buy a used go car. And that's kind of like how everything started. The problem was that, as you guys can imagine, and this is the one thing that I. I don't love about racing, is that it's expensive. You know, it's a very expensive sport. I always tell people, you know, if. If we want to play soccer right now, we buy a ball, we go to a park, and that's it. We play right, baseball, the same thing in racing. It's not like that. It's not that easy. You know, you have to have the go car. You have to have an engine, mechanics, tires, fuel.

[C]

And if something goes wrong with the go kart or the car, it's just expensive to fix.

[A]

It's expensive. So. So we didn't have the money to really go into racing like this. And my dad, after a year, he said, hey, we're already broke. We're out. And I was already. I was only 12 years old. So since a very young age, I had to learn how to work in the car and buy, you know, find sponsors and work in other people's workers to be able to afford to pay my fuel, my inscription, and all these things. So.

[B]

Salesman.

[A]

So since I was very young, I felt like I had to work harder than most kids. And then this is one of the things that. That really shaped me because when I was very young, 13, 14 years old, I was already racing for a couple of years. I always felt very unlucky. And the reason why I feel unlucky is because you have this kid that doesn't have a lot of money. You know, we. We were very, very humble. Public school, all these different things, racing against all these kids that pretty much they were living like in a different planet because everyone was in private school. They had their own driver, they have several go cars, backups of the backups, and all these different things. And I always felt that I had to work extra hard to be able to compete with them. I was good, so I was able to beat them with all their stuff, but I had to work harder. So I saw for years I remember thinking, man, how unlucky I am that my dad doesn't have the money that they have, because if I had their go cars, I will destroy them. I used to tell them that because once in a while, they used to tell me, hey, come check out my go kart. And I used to be, like, super fast. And I'm like, you guys are lucky. I don't have that thing. So, anyway, so for the longest time, you know, fast forward, you know, years went by, A lot of sacrifices were made. I can sit here for hours to tell you guys the full story, but eventually, my dad had to sell his business to continue to support me. He put a mortgage on the family home, and there were a lot of sacrifices that were made. But eventually, when I had an opportunity to come to us, I didn't speak English. I didn't have anything really. So I have to come here by myself and trying to figure it out. At first, I couldn't even rent an apartment because I didn't have Social Security. So there were a lot of struggles. And the reason why I'm saying all this is because for. Like I said, for a while, I felt very unlucky, right, that. That I had to work extra hard to catch up for the difference in equipment that the other kids had. And today, I'm 100% sure that if it wasn't for that mentality that I had back then, those struggles, I wasn't gonna make it here, because that was the time that life was preparing me. I didn't know at the time, right, but life was preparing me for something bigger, that I had no idea that it was coming, right at the time, I felt unlucky. Today. That's probably the best thing that could have ever happened to me, because all the kids I was racing against at the time, they're still my friends, some of them, and now they're my fans, and they're still my friends, but now they're my fans because now they do other things, and they never had to work as hard as I had to work. So, you know, I'm a big believer that life just presents you with these. All these different opportunities. And sometimes we think that we're unlucky or that it's unfair, but you never know what life is preparing you for. So I felt like, you know, luckily, I always kept going and kept pushing and. And eventually, you know, I got to. To the level and to the point that I am today. Yeah.

[B]

When was your first shot at nascar? Like, how does that even work? Like, how does someone Even get into nascar.

[A]

Yeah. So NASCAR is very tricky. And the reason why I say tricky is because NASCAR is the biggest motorsport series in the United States. It's huge in the United States. Doesn't matter if you are a Formula one driver in the car, it doesn't come close to nascar. The thing about NASCAR is that they race mostly on ovals. You know, 90% of the racers that we race in NASCAR that are ovals. So everywhere else in the world, they race. Rothko's racing, you know, left and right, kind of like Formula One of these races. So for me or for any other driver outside the United States, to get into NASCAR is a little bit more difficult because I started racing in Mexico, go cars for a very long time, and then I learned about nascar. There was a good amount of support in nascar, so I decided to go in that route. And in Mexico, we only have. In that country, we only have. At the time, we only had a few ovals. So for me to really. To learn oval racing, to learn the rules and how it works, it was very difficult. And I got to a series called NASCAR Mexico down in Mexico, and I felt like I learned quite a bit. But then once I came to us, I felt like it was starting over. Because. Because you start racing with all these kids that. That's all they've been doing their entire lives. Yeah, they know. Extremely good. Because going left in ovals is extremely difficult. It's very, very difficult, man. I'm telling you for my own experience that before I got into ovals, I used to think, man, that's easy, man. No problem. And once I got in and I was like, holy. Like, this stuff is tough, man, because you. You play a lot with the arrow with the wall. You are very, very close to the other car. So I had to really learn all these things. And. And I always thought that when I came to us, I was 19 years old. I was racing with kids that they were my age, and I was racing with kids that they were 14, 15 years old. And everyone had, like, five times of the experience that I had. Because. Because they were just doing this. I mean, there is. There is a thousand different racetracks, maybe in the United States, in Mexico, I can count them with one hand.

[B]

Damn.

[A]

So it's just. It's just different. The culture is just way different. So I felt like I had to relearn a lot of different things once I came to the United States.

[B]

Bro.

[C]

I saw something the other day, and I regret not buying it.

[B]

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[C]

I'VE been thinking about it for two days.

[B]

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[C]

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[B]

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[C]

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[B]

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[A]

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[B]

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[C]

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[A]

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[B]

That's me. We're.

[C]

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[B]

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[A]

Oh, wow.

[C]

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[B]

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[C]

And you're automatically entered to win 500 in credit.

[B]

Damn, that's a whole shopping spree.

[C]

Yeah, the whole shebang, baby. Winner gets picked in a month, so don't miss that. Let's get back to the episode.

[B]

Let's do it.

[C]

Wow. I. I mean, I can't even imagine the people that you're actually racing right now. People that were actually American born racing in these tracks, and you tell them this story and how they feel, you know, how inspiring they probably feel from your story. I mean, from the beginning of having no money, to having mechanical issues, needing money for a better go kart, to. Even still, once you finally make it in nascar, still having the struggles of, like, there's no ovals in my country. You know, it's like that unluckiness that you say that you had, it's like it continues to follow you, but you continue to also break those barriers and be like, I'll figure it out.

[A]

You know, I believe that. That everything in life, for some reason, as human beings, we think that a lot of things are impossible when they have never been done before. And when I was trying to come to The United States 9 out of 10 people in Mexico, and these were people, actually, they. They love me.

[C]

They.

[A]

They wanted for me to be good. They used to tell me that there was no chance that the Mexican driver was going to be successful in NASCAR in the United States. And they used to think that it was just very difficult, that the opportunities were not really there and the path wasn't really there. And in my mind, I was like, somebody has to change that. Yeah, somebody has to change that. And that somebody is going to have to really open this path and just be stronger and just be able to break this path. And many, many times I thought, man, maybe that somebody's me. Yeah, maybe I'm. Maybe life was preparing me all these years with all these strolls for this moment.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And right now, really, I'm very, very proud, you know, to be the first Mexican to do this, to be the first non American to do that and all these different things. But something that is very cool for me is that I was able to open a path for drivers from outside the United States to come behind me. Not just from Mexico, but from Brazil, from Argentina, from many, many places. And they come and they say, hey, Daniel, you know, what do you think about this? Should I do this? Should I do that? So the path is there. Now it's possible. Now that one guy made it, now it's possible. So for me, that has a huge value, you know, that I was able to open this path for future generations. So it's important for me, you know, to also help pave the road for the next generation.

[B]

Dude, that's such a beautiful thing. And this reminded me of this thing. There's, like, there's. For the longest time in human history, and I don't remember the exact time, but nobody could break the mile in, like, under five minutes.

[C]

Oh, yeah.

[B]

Do you remember? And then it took one person to do it. And then as soon as that person broke that record, multiple people back to back to back to back, started breaking that record. Sometimes you just need that lane. You just need to know that it is possible. And you being that lane, that life for people. I'm getting emotional talking about it, bro. It's amazing. It's beautiful.

[A]

You know what? Something I have learned is that a big battle that we all face in life is mental. Like, if we believe that it's impossible, it's going to be impossible. But if we truly believe that we can do it and that we have the capacity and whatever it takes to be able to do it, eventually it's going to happen. Like I was talking actually to my wife, Julia. You know, for years I've been telling her, hey, I'm going to win the Coca Cola 600. To me, that's the most special race of the year.

[C]

Really?

[A]

Really. And you can ask her, like, two days before the race, I'm like, I want to win this damn race one day. I didn't know it was going to be this weekend, but I really wanted to win that race.

[B]

Wow. Why that one specific?

[A]

Because it's a few different reasons. One, one they. Part of one of the things that they give us a trophy is a super cool vintage vending machine from Coca Cola. I love vintage things so much. But no, I'm also a Coca Cola racing family member, and I've been part of the Coca Cola racing family member for 10 years. All these things are important, but the most important one to me is that my family, all my family's in Mexico, and they don't come to visit me very often. They come maybe once or twice a year. And The Coca Cola 600 is the one race that they come every year. So that's the one race that I have family with. So for me, it's been very special to have them with me. I'm always happier that week, you know, because I have them with me.

[C]

Wow.

[A]

So, you know, and obviously, it's a crown jewel of the sport. You know, it's one of the most important races of the. Of the. In the NASCAR schedule. So all the combination of all the things I just mentioned, it makes for, to me, to be the most special race of the year.

[B]

Wow.

[C]

Wow. And I think people don't understand when you say Coca Cola 600. And we were just speaking about. This is ladies, mainly ladies. Ladies and gentlemen. But that is going around a circle 600 times.

[A]

600. No, no, no, no. 600 miles.

[C]

600 miles.

[A]

600 miles.

[C]

Oh, my God.

[A]

600 miles is. It's a marathon, man. It's a. It's a. That the race lasted five hours and a half.

[C]

Jesus.

[A]

I mean, it's crazy. Normally it's four hours and a half, but since it was a. There was some weather in the area and stuff. Five hours and a half.

[C]

This isn't like Le Mans where you switch drivers. This is just one guy.

[A]

One guy.

[B]

You never get out of the car.

[A]

Never.

[B]

Never. No matter what they're doing with the car. Nothing. You're never getting out of the car

[C]

to the side where you have to go bathroom.

[A]

So. That's a good question. A lot of people ask me that. So We. We sweat so much. Got it. That we just.

[C]

You're right. You're right. Because I. I did one time, a marathon, like, running marathon, and I needed to go to the bathroom immediately, and I was like, no, don't go. Because I wanted a certain time. Right. And I sweat so much. It went away.

[A]

It went away.

[C]

It goes away.

[A]

It goes away. And. And I'm. I'm drinking the entire race. I drink maybe. Maybe a couple liters, you know.

[B]

Wow, three.

[A]

A few liters, really, in the race of water and electrolytes. And I don't pee. So.

[B]

Do you have, like, a straw?

[A]

Yeah, so I have. I have a straw here on. On. On the side of the seat that

[B]

you can just grab.

[A]

Every driver is different. The way I have it, I have. I have it with Velcro, and whenever I want it, I grab it, I put it in my mouth under the helmet, on my mouth, and then I just squeeze it. And then, you know, I just. I suck a little bit and that's it. Mainly under caution. I do it under caution.

[B]

Like on a straightaway or something.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. And some drivers, they have like a hose with a little. With a little machine that. Yeah. They press a button and it. It squares.

[B]

Oh, that's cool.

[A]

But 15 years ago, I had that one, and. And one time it stopped working. And that's not fun. So that's why I prefer just to a more manual. One manual squish and you just suck.

[B]

And that's it.

[A]

And it's gonna work.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

I think that's more gangster, more cool.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

Yeah. So 600 miles. That's. That. That's an incredible feeling. What's Daniel Suarez, pre ritual race day? I mean, you wake up and what's the plan? Do you immediately go to. To the track or is like, what's the race day? Do you have a favorite breakfast? I mean, what are you jamming to before? They're like, like, what is that?

[A]

Yeah. So, for example, in The Coca Cola 600, I have this device, you know, that. The whoop that, you know, tells me how I slept. You know, the. The calories.

[C]

Are you a 90% recovery guy?

[A]

I was 80 today.

[C]

Today. Not bad.

[B]

It's good.

[A]

Especially because I was all messed up after traveling last night from the East Coast. But in the race, I mean, I'm going to. I'm going to actually do a little game here. How many calories do you think I

[B]

burn on race day?

[A]

In the race. Just in the race.

[B]

Just in the race.

[A]

Just in the race.

[B]

I'm Going to, I'm going to vet, venture to say in the pocket of 7 to 11,000.

[A]

11,000.

[C]

11,000.

[A]

That's a lot.

[B]

Yeah, I was gonna say 7,000 to 11,000.

[C]

1400 calories.

[A]

No, 1400. Well, I born 3, 500 calories.

[C]

Damn, that's a lot.

[A]

I mean, that's a marathon, man. Somebody that runs a marathon.

[C]

Yeah, that's a marathon. That's how much?

[A]

3,500 calories in the race only. So the reason why I'm saying that is because for me it's important to plan my sleep. Sleep is very important. And also the food. Currently, I like to eat two hours before the race because if I don't, if it's closer to the race, I'm too full. And if it's too far from the race, I get hungry in the middle of the race. After the Cox 800 after the race, I was starving. Like, I was starving, man. I wanted to eat whatever was in front of me. So what I do, I wake up and I try to plan my race backwards. What do I mean with that? So if the race, let's say that the race is at 2pm I'm going to have lunch at noon. So if I'm going to have lunch at noon, I have to have breakfast at 9 in the morning. So I woke up at 8 and I have breakfast at 9. And then I go a few hours, lunch and then the race. So that's kind of like how I do the footage part of it. And then when it comes to rituals and things like that, you know, something that I have learned is that once you get to this level of being professional, you are being pulled in all these different directions. Right. We have sponsors, we have, we have like interviews, interviews, meetings. We have, you know, sponsors. We have all these different things that we are just extremely busy. Sometimes if you are not careful, by the time that you get to the race, you're already wear out or you're already tired of people or tired of everything.

[C]

So your mood changes.

[A]

Yes. So for me, it's very important to have a time for myself.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Especially once I'm having lunch to really reset my mind and to, to understand what I'm doing. Because something that used to happen to me a lot and now I go through this process, it doesn't happen as often. It's very easy to forget one, to have fun and to enjoy everything that is happening. Because if you think about it, when I was 11 years old, I was starting racing. The dream was to one day be a professional racing Driver. Right. Hopefully one day to make it. So now we're here. And most drivers don't enjoy the moment. We just go in autopilot because there is so many things. So. So I try to reset my mind and be thankful and see the whole thing. See it, you know, 60, 80, 100,000 people in the grass, like, telling yourself,

[C]

this is what I dreamt for. This is what I. Yeah.

[A]

You know, like, remind yourself how fortunate you are that you are living this journey. So I try to do that. And also I do a little exercise in my mind of I do three things. The first, I visualize, and I remember all the struggles I have to go through to be able to get to this point, you know, like family, you know, struggling to fix my GO car when my GO car broke because we didn't have money for a new chain or a tire. All these different moments that. That really made me who I am today. Remember this where I came from, the number two. I tried to think and visualize all my successes that I have had. You know, when I won the championship, when I won the Cox 600 now, and all these different big wins last year I won in Mexico. All these different big wins. Trying to visualize all these things, like. And remember, you know, all this joy of these victories.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And number three, I try to put myself already in race mode for that specific race. Like, for example, this weekend, we're racing in Nashville. So I'm gonna start thinking about the strategy. I'm gonna start thinking about the pit stops, the research, who is around me, how good is going to be my car, the balance of my car. And then you're already in the. In the mood of what is going to happen in the race. Yeah. So I kind of, like, I go through this exercise just to get my mind ready, and once I finish these things, it takes me 10, 15 minutes. I feel like I'm just. I'm ready.

[C]

You're ready right now. Talking to you like, you're a very determined, very nice, humble young man. It's very inspirational. When it's time for race day, and, like, the competitors around you, are you the same way right now, or are you a killer? A. Yeah, a killer.

[A]

You have to change, man.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Right.

[A]

I'm the kind of person that I'm always. I'm just always having a good time, happy. I love to give, you know, especially to the people I love. My family, wife. When you get inside the car, I'm the selfish person that you can meet, and you have to be like that.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

You know, I only care about one thing, and that's my team. And not just. It's not just myself, it's my team. Yeah. You know, and, yes, I have two teammates, and. And I care about those guys as well, but it's my team first.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

So. And you have to be like that. You know, Michael Jordan didn't make it to. To be who he is because he was a nice guy, he was selfish, and he wanted to win. The same thing with Kobe Bryant.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

I'm a huge Kobe Bryant fan. And. And, you know, this guy, he was driven, you know, and. And I have learned a lot from. From these legends of sports that. That, yeah, you have to be a nice guy, you have to be good with people and all these kind of things, but when it's game on, it's game on, and you have to be in that.

[C]

Like the story of Kobe Bryant, when they were playing in the usa, when he was in Team USA with Pagasal,

[A]

he went to him.

[C]

I'm going through his chest, and it was like, no, you're not. That's your teammate. That's your brother. Boom.

[A]

I read his book, man, and he was talking about it. I mean, I could not believe it. But that's just a perfect sample, like, in that particular moment.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

He's just another competitor, you know, And. And. And this is the way I think about it. And I. I remember having this conversation to my dad is either you or me.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And I want to pick me, of course. What we're racing, right?

[C]

Yeah. Who's going to be holding that trophy and getting that vending machine.

[B]

Exactly.

[C]

Right. Do they have Coca Cola in it, or you supply that yourself?

[A]

Oh, I want to call him. I say, hey, guys, I want. I want some Mexican Coca Cola. Glass bottles.

[C]

Sugar cane.

[A]

Sugar cane.

[C]

Speaking of race and things happening and being a killer, there's this time where I believe you had a malfunctioning in your headset, and I quote, you tell me if I'm wrong, but you said something was going on wrong, and it. There was a little frustration, and you said, it amazes me that we can send to the moon, but we can't figure out our radios. Is that false, or did you say that?

[A]

No, I did say that. I did say that. Because that was in a race, by the way.

[B]

You said that.

[A]

Yeah. So that was. So I didn't explode like that. Just. Just from left field. Yeah, we already had. That was already, like the third weekend that the radio. We had issues with the radios with the frequency, and we were changing and the problem is that we're going on, on pieces. We were changing first the car and then the radio and then the helmet system and, and, and then were not able to figure it out. And as you guys can imagine, the communication is key.

[B]

Oh my God.

[A]

On everything. Right. But especially in racing because things happen extremely quick. So when, when you're driving, you're working your butt off and you are tired and the car, you know, you are trying to manage that thing and then you're trying to talk in the radio and then they say we can hear you. And then when they talk to me, I can hear them.

[B]

Oh my God.

[A]

Sometimes you blew up. So that was a little blow up.

[C]

No, I. Would you have the audio?

[B]

That's a very good point. Like, it is, man. It's a really good point.

[A]

Yeah. I'm like, man, how in the hell we can send people to the moon?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And we can fix this radio.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

We can play real quick just so the audience can hear.

[A]

Hey, but hey, for, for. Do you see how calm I was? You were calm. I was calm. Like I was in peace. I was just sending the message, hey, this is. This, this. I'm, I'm tired of this, but I have. Under control.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

That's crazy. Speaking about emotions and, and, and being prepped for the race, how was your experience going to your country and racing in Mexico? Nascar, we were there. How was that like, and, and I know the, the, the person that you are probably felt so much like, I don't know, emotion going through, through your head that day. How was that?

[A]

He was.

[C]

And I know their, your family was there. I'm sure all your friends were there. I mean, it was insane.

[A]

I had a few hundred people there. Yeah, you were the, you were the,

[C]

I mean from just spectators and Peter.

[B]

Michael Jackson.

[C]

Yeah. Everybody was talking about you. Yeah, everybody.

[A]

It was, it was one of the most special weekends in my life. You know, there was so much build up that my goal once I got to that because we worked so hard for that, for that event and for that race. And I remember having this conversation with Julia, but Julia is a little bit of an anxious person, my wife, and she was a little bit concerned about the weekend because there was so much going on. Everyone wanted a little piece of me and I was just trying to leave the moment. You know, I didn't want that week and weekend to go by like this and then think, man, I didn't enjoy this thing. Yeah.

[C]

It's almost like getting married. Like, you don't want everybody taking Pictures of you and talking to everybody. You just want to be with your wife and enjoy the moment. Right?

[A]

So I felt like my goal and I felt like actually I did a pretty good job with this because. Because I prepare for it mentally. I went over there thinking, I have prepared myself as good as possible. I have done all my homework. I have prepared myself to be the best possible racing driver I can possibly be. Now I have to go out there and have fun. Yeah, have fun and be present. Be really, really present. There were a lot of people that were like, man, you know, you have a lot of pressure. I'm like, I got this. I'm fine. Yeah, I'm totally fine. And, and winning that race, one of the races, one of the two races that I competed in the weekend, is probably one of the most special wins of my career.

[C]

Because

[A]

of the people. It's the first time ever because when you are inside the car, it's extremely loud. Like, it's extremely loud. And it's the first time ever in my career that when I'm driving, I can hear the people outside. The first time ever. Wow. In the stadium. In the stadium.

[C]

Because how loud?

[A]

When I went to elite, I can hear.

[C]

Wow. That gave me the chills.

[A]

I got goosebumps. Wow. And. And this. When I was driving, when I was driving, I got distracted and, and I remember making a little mistake on the shifting and I'm like, daniel, put your together focus. I have to reset myself because it was a big distraction to have that much love and support. And then when I won the race, I mean, it was like.

[B]

I mean, I feel like a movie, bro.

[A]

Man, actually that's part of the premiere tonight.

[B]

Oh yeah, the documentary.

[A]

The documentary that. We're gonna see it. So.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

So, you know, it's super cool, man. It's one of the best weekends. I'm just, yeah. You know, to have my family there, my friends there, sponsors, long time friends, my mechanics. When I was 15 years old, like a bunch of my wife, it was

[C]

kind of like your I did it moment.

[A]

No, man, it was, it was amazing. It was amazing. And, and, and that's what it's all about, you know, in the sport. Something I love about sports is that you work so hard, you work so hard for so many years with absolutely nothing in guarantee. There is nothing guarantee.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

You're just hoping that you get to experience these moments. And I've been very, very blessed to have several moments like this in my life and in my career. And I'm only 34 years old. I Still have plenty more to come.

[B]

What is, like the average, like, I guess, time span for a NASCAR driver?

[A]

So it's a.

[C]

It's a while.

[B]

Some of these races. Yeah, they're. They're like in their 60s, 50s.

[A]

No, not that much. But, like, right now, you guys know who is Denny Hamling? He's a very good driver.

[C]

Yeah, I've. I kind of started getting into it after we started, like, working with Chevy and doing a bunch of stuff.

[A]

Yeah. Actually, he just finished third in Coxy Hunter. He was one of the guys that was hunting me down.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

And he's a. I mean, he's one of the best drivers. And this guy. I mean, I don't know how old exactly he is, but he has to be like, 43, 44.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

And he's still in his prime. Yeah, the guy is very good. Because if you take care, and this is something that I truly believe, you really take care of yourself. You work on your craft, and you always continue to get better. You can. You can race to the mid-40s if you want. But obviously, as you grow, you know, there is going to be a time in life. Right now, I live and I die for racing. I have for, you know, breakfast racing, lunch racing, dinner racing, everything racing. Maybe one day, you know, my priorities are gonna change. And when that day comes, I'm gonna have to reconsider, you know, how bad I want to do this. But today, this is what I love to do, man. And this is the reason why I woke up early every morning and I wore my ass off.

[C]

Wow, that's so inspiring, man. It gave me the chills. I mean, you looking out into that crowd. I'm assuming you took a couple seconds and that feeling. I remember being at that race and. And just asking myself, I wonder how that feels, you know?

[A]

It's amazing, man.

[C]

It really is. And then another funny story, too, is, you know, people back at home, we actually went to NASCAR Mexico City to. With Chevy to go see Danielle, and we had an interview lined up. It didn't happen. I think something happened. Whatever.

[B]

This is way better, by the way.

[C]

Yeah, yeah, this is way better. But funny story, because I recently was in Chicago, and I was telling Daniel that I met these two guys, Uno's Guerritos, next to me. And I told them that I was going to interview you. And they looked at me like I was the shit, Right? And they went to your race, but in Mexico City. I did. I did tell somebody. I was like, yeah, we were supposed to interview Daniel Suarez today or Yesterday, but it didn't work out. And then that guy was like, yeah, fucking right. I didn't believe you from that time. To me being like somebody, like, yeah, right. To like a couple days ago, like, oh, wow, you are, you know, so it's so funny how that happened.

[A]

Wow.

[B]

You brought up your documentary that you have premiering tonight. Tell us a little bit about it. I'm kind of curious.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

How much you were involved as well, with it.

[A]

Yeah. So it's crazy how life works sometimes, but my first win in the NASCAR cup series happened in 2022 in Sonoma, California.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

And it was amazing.

[B]

Win.

[A]

Very, very special. Without me knowing. Wilmer Badorama.

[B]

Oh, yeah.

[A]

He was in that race.

[C]

No way.

[A]

And he didn't know that there was a Mexican driver in there. He didn't know he was a fan. He went, I think, with friends or somebody invited him. He was in a suite. And when he realized that there was a Mexican driver there, you know, he got hooked and he started, you know, doing a little research on myself and he started learning a little bit about myself. So eventually, wow. We connected.

[C]

Wow.

[A]

We had a few meetings and then we start talking about my journey, my story. And he loved his story. He said, man, we have to do a documentary on your story. Wow. And, you know, you know, these things sometimes take time. Right. And. And we were talking about it, how we're going to do it, how long it's going to take, and all these different things. You know, a year or two went by of planning how we're going to do it. And eventually, you know, the NASCAR Mexico race came to a schedule, and that was kind of like, okay, now it's.

[C]

It.

[A]

Because now it's a full circle moment. I mean, you started in Mexico, you came here with nothing, driving an old bus, bagging all the way from Mexico to here without speaking English, this, this and that. And now you're coming back as. As, you know, like one of the heroes. And. And all these things. At the time, we didn't know I was gonna win the race, obviously. Right. So. So we decided we have to do, like, the full story, you know, the full circle. So NASCAR got involved as well. And. And we start filming. You know, we start filming for a year or so.

[C]

And this is a year in. Of filming.

[A]

Oh, yeah. So. So, you know, part of the film is. Is the race in Mexico. We won the race. So it's something like the cherry on top of the cake.

[C]

Yeah. I mean, filming for so long and then like, of reviewing it back, it's like you have these memories to look back on now, and you're like, wow, I can't believe I was in that position. Yes. And then filming still for that documentary, it's like your mind completely changes.

[A]

Yeah, but because that's. That's the other thing, man, is that, you know, we had the Mexico race, we had the sponsors, we had family, friends, all these different things. I mean, I'm pretty sure that the reason why we didn't get to do that interview is because I was a little busy. I was getting all the different directions and on top of that, I had a crew of filming around me the entire time. So it was like a little crazy, man.

[C]

I can't even imagine.

[A]

But when you see the film, because I already saw it. I mean, I got children.

[C]

I can't wait to see it. Honestly. I'm so like, first of all, I love documentaries. And just hearing you out right now, I can't even just. I'm dying to visually see that.

[B]

Me too. Me too. Do you know if it's going to be like anywhere where people can watch it? Can we send people to watch it at a specific place?

[A]

So not yet. Okay. Right now it's only for. For the premiere, and then once that happens, you know, hopefully we can get something.

[B]

Yeah, it's gonna happen.

[A]

So with a big.

[C]

The premiere is tonight in la and you're going to it at a theater.

[B]

Yeah, Chinese theater. Theater, Right. So the Chinese Theater is that.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

Wow.

[A]

If you guys want to go, let's go. I'm sorry. Your wife is going to want to kill me. I'm sorry.

[C]

Yeah, no, we'll see, we'll see. But I can't wait to see it.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

Yeah, I did see also that, by the way, the Mexico nascar, it was celebrity star studded as well.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

I mean, we had the chance with Chevy to walk through the.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

By the pits.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

And I mean, I was just breaking my neck left and right. I was like, wow, this is crazy. I. I was like, is this always like that or. I'm pretty sure just Mexico. In the Mexico series, I saw Pepe Lad walking around. So many artists, so many actors, a lot of people from novellas. And I was like, yeah, this is crazy.

[A]

Yeah, it was big, man. It was very big. And I felt like I was, you know, I was part of a very big, important part of that show. And it was amazing. Honestly, to this day, probably the. The best weekend of my life.

[C]

Did you even go to sleep? Like, how does sleep work for you? That night I Wouldn't be.

[B]

Did you party that night after the race?

[A]

After the race? After the second race. Because I raced Saturday and Sunday after the second race, I did a party, and it was amazing. A bunch of drivers were there, big crew members. We had a. We had an amazing time.

[C]

That's so. Wow. Okay, so me and Josh were huge car guys. Like, I love cars since. Since I was born.

[A]

And you have to here in la, man. The car culture here, man, is something I love.

[C]

It's incredible. It's incred. I don't know how long you're gonna be in town for, but every Sunday, and I hope to give. Will you be here Sunday? You're probably busy, but there's a race

[A]

we're raising in Nashville.

[C]

Oh, my God, you're right. Whenever you're back in Los Angeles, there's a beautiful place in Agora Hills, kind of like by Malibu.

[A]

Okay.

[C]

And every Sunday, vintage cars, Japanese cars, you know, Ferraris, and just really nice cars, Porsches, they all get together. And I kid you not, there's a lot of car culture in the world, but there's nothing that you will ever experience like that Sunday at that little coffee shop area in Malibu in the middle of the mountain.

[B]

Is this where you've taken me?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Oh, yeah.

[C]

It's. It's a beautiful car culture thing. So whenever. You know what? I'll just DM you the information. Whenever. Just make sure. Because I know you're a car guy, so you would absolutely love it. And I can't even imagine the people that see Daniel Suarez pull up, man.

[A]

Let me tell you something. I'm such a big car guy. I'm considering calling my team and say, I'm going to get sick, man. I'm not going to make it to Nashville. I'm going to be in Malibu. Don't do that.

[B]

Don't do that. No, but.

[A]

But I promise you that.

[B]

That's so funny.

[A]

You know, that's the one thing that I love about here in la.

[C]

The car culture is huge.

[A]

Amazing. I love that. I mean, probably 100% of the friends that I have here in L. A are because of cars and all the parts. Half of my collection of cars, they have come from here, from, From. From California. Like, I just love the car culture. So I really, really hope that one day I can make that one.

[C]

Yes, yes, 100. Because like I said, being you, being a car guy, I know that you would appreciate that. Yeah, you enjoy your little cafecito, Walk around, see all the cars. And I'm talking about, like, the best of the best here in Los Angeles.

[B]

Some crazy cars. What is your car collection? Look.

[A]

Yeah, so as I mentioned earlier, my dad mechanic shop and all these things. My dad was very big into boss wagons. Yeah, especially, especially Beetles and bosses all these cars. So I'm big into these cars. I have when I was young my dream car was a Bulks wagon boss. One of those hippie bosses. I still want that car with all the windows. So you know, that was my dream car.

[C]

There's like 16 windows on that car, I think.

[A]

Well, the, the most with the Most window is 23.

[C]

Oh my God.

[A]

I have 23. 23. I have a few of those.

[C]

Really?

[A]

Yeah. I mean when you put them together sometimes they start reproducing by yourselves. I don't know why.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

But I have, I have Beetles, I have Carmen GS. I have, I have a little bit of everything. I'm, I'm a little freak when it comes to that. My wife is into all Porsches. Yeah, she has a couple. Oh you're a Porsche Girly 6 and a 912. And wow. So yeah, so she's, she's the fancy one. I'm the more humble one. But, but, but they are super cool. I love it. And, and the, the, the air.

[C]

Cool.

[A]

You know world here in, in, in California is huge, man. I have a lot of friends that have like top notch cars here in, in California.

[B]

Do you have like a garage back at your home?

[A]

Yeah, so, so I have, I have a garage with a small house. So so yeah, one of my, one of my dreams, you know when I was a young kid was to have cars one day. And the second dream was to have a big garage where I can put all my cars in one place. So a few years ago I was able to with Julia to build a house a little bit outside the city. And I built what is it like a 5,000 or 6,000 square foot. So I have like 18 cars. Oh my God.

[C]

That's like a huge house of just garage.

[A]

Yeah. So the, the, the garage is literally bigger than the house.

[B]

Oh my gosh.

[A]

So, so. And I have all my car there. So hopefully one day that you guys come to Charlotte. Yes, I can give you guys a tour.

[C]

I would absolutely love that. Man, oh man. So I got some questions for you. So I'm. I got like two questions for you and then we're gonna do like we called it Think fast because yeah, you're a NASCAR driver. You know it kind of.

[A]

Can I work?

[B]

Do you get it?

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

One of the questions I had for you was. Let me find it. I'm so sorry. Oh, here it is. Again. NASCAR, whether that be Talladega, whether it be the 600, whether it be 500 or you have to.

[A]

Oh man.

[C]

Are you gonna give up one of your trophies so the, so the selection can win the Mundial or you go,

[A]

you know what, I'm winning the championship or one race?

[C]

One race. I'll give you one race.

[A]

One race. I think this, the, the Mexican team. I give it to the Mexican team. Yeah.

[C]

Okay, cool.

[A]

One race for the championship.

[C]

The killer comes. The killer. Because I doubt the Mexican team is going to give up a championship for like. No, they won't. Yeah, they won't. Right.

[A]

But I'm Mexican so I really want these guys to be.

[C]

Yeah, of course. The next question is if you can swap lives with another Mexican born athlete for the day, who would that be?

[A]

That's a good one, man. That's a very, very good.

[C]

It's only a few of you guys who are like living legends right now and like very inspirational.

[A]

Oh, man.

[C]

A Mexican prime too. Yeah. In their prime or someone you, you look up to, you respect. It doesn't, obviously not in, it doesn't have to be racing.

[A]

You know Pedro Rodriguez, Pedro and Ricardo Rodriguez, the, the Mano Rodriguez. No, that they were, they were actually racing drivers.

[C]

Really?

[A]

From, from, you know. Yeah.

[C]

There you go.

[A]

Wow. So those guys, they were. How cool is that?

[C]

Cool.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

So, so these guys were the, the driver, the Mexican driver's heroes. And I wish, you know, I can trade life with these guys to see what it was about, you know, back then because, you know, life was so different back then and these guys made it to, they raised in NASCAR a couple Formula 1, they won races, they won Le Mans. Like they were everywhere, man. They even competed in nascar. They never won like championships or races in nascar, but they were like competing everywhere. So these guys were definitely legends of.

[B]

I wanna, I wanna know more about these guys. Yeah, there needs to be like a,

[A]

actually the, the, the, the speedway in Mexico. Do you know what is the name of the speedway in Mexico? The one that you guys went?

[C]

Oh, because these guys.

[A]

These guys? Yeah, yeah, it's named after them. Wow.

[C]

And not only did they do nascar, they did it. They did all the races. They said they did Le Mans.

[A]

Yeah, they won Le Mans. They won Le Mans. They did Formula One and they did a few races in nascar. In nascar, they, they didn't do it a lot. Yeah, but, but yeah, they were, These

[B]

guys are, they're not around.

[A]

No, no. They actually, they, they. They got killed in accidents because back then the cars were super dangerous, man. But, yeah, no, no, they.

[B]

Yeah, like, both got killed in a car accident.

[A]

Yeah, something like that. Yeah. But, but, but obviously, yeah, the younger, the younger one.

[C]

That's incredible.

[A]

I, I.

[C]

Same with me. I want to look up and see more. That's very inspiring.

[B]

I have, like, a random fun question when you're, like, do you drive outside of nascar? Like, are you, like, you know, like, if you're gonna go to dinner, are you the guy you're driving?

[A]

Yeah, yeah. I'm always driving. I'm very. Julia can tell you that I'm a very bad passenger. Sick. She called it. Back seat passenger.

[C]

Oh, yeah.

[B]

Back to.

[A]

Because I don't know, man. I. I just. I don't know why. I don't. I don't. I don't even do it on purpose, but when she's driving and, and if I felt like. And she drives very good, but if I feel like she doesn't move quickly enough or if she hesitates, I'm like, come on, baby.

[B]

Yeah, let's go.

[A]

She gets mommy.

[C]

So I think it's just being a car guy.

[A]

Yeah. Yeah.

[C]

I just, I'm the same way. Yeah.

[A]

When I'm driving, I'm a little more relaxed. I'm. I'm relaxed, but I'm more like, Like, I just. I just, I'm a little impatient.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Like. Like, I'm going there and I'm not going fast. But. Yeah, but if you're gonna move, move. Don't, Don't. Don't do that. I call it the squirrels. When I see. When I see somebody is doing this, I always said, yeah, look at that squirrel. Like, it doesn't know where to go.

[C]

Oh, my God. I'm the same way. Like, my wife will be like, hey, do you want me to drive so you can, like, take a nap? I'm like, you think I'm going to take a nap and relax when you're driving?

[B]

That's crazy.

[C]

That's crazy. Even though if she's a good driver or not, I can't relax when someone else is driving and I don't have control. It freaks me out.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, it's. It's tough.

[C]

And I don't know if this is true, but you actually voice a character in Cars three named Danny Swerves.

[A]

That's me. Can we see.

[B]

Can we see the what. What the character can look like?

[A]

Oh, yeah.

[C]

How was that experience working with Pixar?

[A]

No, Pixar man. Look at that. That's me right there.

[B]

I think I do remember this.

[A]

Yeah. So.

[B]

So they made you look so cool for the.

[A]

For the Cars 3 movie. Service Man. So for the Car Stream movie, they were having kind of like some of the old cars being replaced for the new, upcoming young drivers.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

So I was one of the new upcoming drivers and. Exactly. The hot shots. And there is one. One. A couple scenes where I show up and one of the drivers thinks that I'm someone else. And the guy calls me by the name, and I'm like, it's Danny, bro.

[B]

So.

[A]

So, yeah, it's very cool.

[B]

That's super, super cool. So you went to the premiere and you worked with Disney.

[C]

That's crazy.

[A]

Yeah, it was amazing. And for me, it was such a cool thing because I'm probably one of the biggest Cars movies fan ever.

[C]

It's such a good movie.

[A]

I love it so much. So when I got this opportunity, like, me.

[B]

Yeah, Yeah.

[C]

I was telling.

[B]

I'm gonna watch Carson.

[C]

My wife, I think, like, seven months ago, I said, you've never seen Cars, and she's never seen it. So we saw. We saw, I think, one to three, like, immediately.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

I think one is, like.

[B]

One is the best one. One is by far the best.

[A]

I feel like, on everything. No, like in Toy Story and all these movies, the one is always like

[B]

this OG the one is magic.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

And then they try to recreate magic, which you cannot.

[C]

No, no, the.

[A]

The one is always the.

[C]

The OG Yeah, they're still good, but there's nothing that. Like the. The first one. Are you a big, fast and nefarious.

[A]

I was thinking about that, man. Those guys, they. They. I mean, they went a little too far. Right now. They're in the. On the 15 one already.

[B]

Yeah, they're in space.

[C]

No, they're in space.

[A]

Yeah. I love to watch those movies.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

You know, I don't like that.

[C]

No.

[A]

I don't like it.

[B]

The mockery of it.

[C]

Ah.

[A]

To me. And this is me, the racing driver. Right. But to me, Talladega Nights, it make us drivers look like we're clowns.

[B]

No.

[A]

So I don't like that. Yeah.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Like, we're not. We don't do any of that stuff.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

I think they're really trying to, like, depict, like, the stereotype, the white country driver.

[A]

They went, like. To me, to be quite honest, to me, it's a little disrespectful.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

To the sport and to the drivers. But then you look at Days of Thunder.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

That's a good one. Yeah. I like this.

[B]

That representation of that.

[A]

That's a more real representation of what, what NASCAR is about. The other one is more almost like I'd see. As a comedy.

[C]

Yeah, no.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[C]

100 comedy. Favorite car from the, from the Fast and the Furious saga.

[A]

I. Since I'm a classic car guy kind of thing. I love the, the Torettos Chargers.

[C]

You know, when it goes off the line like this. Damn.

[A]

Those things are. Those things were something else. Yeah. I mean the, the Supra that, The orange one. That. The orange one. That thing was pretty cool as well and super powerful. But Toretto always coming with American muscle cars. I just love that. I mean that was something that was consistent through all the movies.

[C]

The whole time.

[A]

He always show up with an American muscle. And I love that part.

[C]

Remember in Tokyo Drift at the end he was not in the movie, but he pulls up in an American muscle in Japan.

[A]

Yeah. I think that was a challenger. I think it was.

[C]

Yeah, it was like another challenger.

[A]

Oh my God. That thing was amazing, man. Yeah. Those American muscle cars are amazing.

[C]

Yeah. Are you, are you into Japanese cars?

[A]

I. Listen, I, I like cars. I'm a car guy. I like cars. Everything, Everything that has four wheels.

[C]

Classic. Yeah.

[A]

I like. My wife and I, we went to Japan for honeymoon two years ago. I felt like I wanted to buy everything. You know, this car's right hand drive, so I just love cars. I'm not into Japanese cars.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

But I respect them a lot. Every time that I see like an old, you know, Nissan. Yeah. One of those that tunes. Old lower. Like, I'm like, man.

[C]

Yeah, it's very cool. Sweet.

[A]

I like them a lot. But like I said, my thing is more the, the, the air cooled. I'm into both wagons and Porsches.

[C]

Yeah, you have, you have a Porsche yourself?

[A]

Well, Julian, but I drive it once in a while. Yeah, I just have to ask for permission.

[C]

That's your baby, huh? And it's stick shift. And she drives a stick shift.

[A]

Wow.

[C]

Oh, you have to, you have to get those cars and stick. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I remember when I was in Japan and out of all the cars that I saw, I'm talking Skylines, I'm talking Hondas, I'm talking everything. Right. The one car that I wanted to buy was an Uber car that I would always get called. I think it was a Nissan Alford.

[A]

Alford.

[C]

And it was this huge, luxurious van, like a black van that there's one driver in the front and then there's two Captain chairs in the back. And it's just so luxurious. And you said. I was like, we don't have that here.

[A]

Is that. Is that like a box? It's like a bun.

[C]

It's Alford. Like P, H, A R D. Alfred Ard. Yeah, Alfred Van. There it is, man.

[A]

I saw those.

[C]

That one, that black one.

[A]

I saw those things. I want one of those things. Yeah, they were. You're right. They were Uber.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Yeah, that's what they look like inside, bro.

[C]

You order an Uber and the guy. The thing is the culture in Japan. So beautiful, bro. You order one of those Uber cars in Japan, Sal. El bato del caro to open up your.

[B]

Your.

[C]

The sliding door. Because those come with sliding doors.

[A]

Yeah, he's in a tux. Uber.

[C]

He's in a tux. White gloves. Nicest guy. Doesn't know what you're talking about, but the nicest guy. And you just sit down, he takes you to your destination. And I don't know if you know, but in Japan, like, the dollar goes a little bit long. It stretches out a little bit longer than, like, it's a. Has a good currency right now.

[B]

And.

[C]

Yeah, you can get those for cheap. And you just go around town. It's really nice.

[A]

I love it. I love it. I. When. When we went to Japan, you know, the cars, the people, the food, the super clean. I love the culture over there on the other side.

[B]

That's so cool.

[C]

Yeah, there's like, no trash cans on the street. Nothing, man, nothing. Which is cool because, like, there's no trash. Right. But at the same time, it's like, now I got trash in my bag the whole way, and, like, I gotta figure out where to put this trash at. Yeah.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

So it's really cool.

[A]

I love the culture. I really, really love the culture.

[B]

Yeah, I gotta go. That's, like, on my bucket list.

[C]

Yeah, you should, man. It's. It's completely black and white. From here or anywhere.

[B]

Anywhere else in the world.

[C]

Yeah. Speaking about culture, I wanted to ask you, in Monterey, ques la comida? Traditional.

[A]

Traditional in Monterey. El cabrito.

[C]

El cabrito.

[A]

Nice.

[C]

So for me and for all the fans out there, what are your top three favorite foods?

[A]

I would say tamales. Tamales. The carne.

[C]

Okay.

[A]

The Carnegie.

[C]

Dude, we're such huge sushi fanatics.

[A]

I'm crazy about sushi. And. And in Japan.

[B]

Oh, that was perfect.

[A]

You cannot find a bad spot over there, man.

[B]

Yeah. Do you go to the.

[A]

Do you go to the rolling.

[C]

Yeah. And you know what?

[A]

Super cheap.

[C]

No. Nobody Recommended me that spot. Nobody. I didn't see it on Tick Toc. Have people hitting me up and be like, hey, make sure you go to this revolving sushi place. It was somewhere me and my wife were just walking around. We saw.

[A]

Cool.

[C]

Oh man, I was there for like three hours, man.

[A]

Julia and I, we, we got, you know, you have to keep the plates, so. So you pay.

[B]

Oh yeah, yeah.

[C]

I mean, cuz the plates are basically like. Yeah. Like. And then you show them how many

[B]

plates you did your receipt.

[A]

Essentially like, like we had a mountain.

[B]

Oh my God.

[A]

And it was so cheap, man. After, I mean, after eating and, and living like, like barely walking, we were paying like I don't know, 20 bucks, 25 bucks.

[B]

No.

[C]

Yeah, it's cheap, bro. I'm telling you, the food is cheap.

[A]

Yes. I mean, wow. Unbelievable.

[B]

When do you get like, when does this, how long is the NASCAR season? Like, when do you guys get a chance to go on vacation and stuff?

[A]

So it's, it's long. We start in February and we don't finish until November.

[B]

Oh my.

[C]

And serio.

[A]

It's a long season.

[B]

So December, January. That's all you have?

[A]

Yeah, well, the second half of November as well, because we finish in the first half of November.

[B]

Okay, cool. So like two and a half months.

[A]

Two and a half months. But January, January is already racing. January is like the second week of season. Yeah. We're already working, we're doing things. So in reality we have half November and December. That's. Those are my, my vacations. For real.

[B]

And then you're racing every single week outside of that.

[A]

This year. Last year we had one weekend off. This year we have two.

[B]

Okay, good.

[A]

So thank God. Yeah, thank God. But, but it's not. I mean, it's a marathon. But listen, man, that's why it's very important. I always tell people this. You know, I go to high schools a lot to give speeches and to trying to give them advice. It's extremely important to love what you do.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Because when you love what you do, you don't have to be looking at the clock, you know, you don't have to be looking at. Ah, man, it's. It's Monday, know. Oh, it's Friday, let's go. You know, I feel like, I feel like when you love what you do, you don't think about. Oh man, it's a long. Yeah, it's long. Maybe I wish I can spend a little more time with, with my family and with some friends once in a while, but I just love Racing so much that I just don't mind it. I love it.

[C]

Wow.

[B]

I super passionate into like working out and I always get fascinated with like athletes that curate their workouts around their sport. Do you do that? Is there some sort of workouts that you do that really help you become a better NASCAR driver?

[A]

Yeah, you have to. Because every, I mean, you know that. But every sport you require different things. Right. In nascar, the biggest thing that we have to fight that is way different than any other sport is the heat. Oh, people, people don't even think about that. Understand this. But inside the car in the middle of the summer, which is when, obviously when is the hottest. Inside the car gets up to 140 degrees.

[B]

No way.

[A]

It's hot, man. It's very, very hot. So we lose so much weight. That's.

[B]

Honestly, that's a sauna. That's like a high, high hot sauna.

[A]

So a lot of my routine of my workouts are in the sauna. Oh.

[B]

To be able to, to sustain that.

[A]

To sustain that and to get my, my body acclimated to that. But it's very hard right now. I would say that right now it's not super hot right now. Maybe inside the car it is inside the 120, but that's still insane. But once you get to the 140, man, I mean, it's a hundred degrees outside and you, and you take the window, the hand out and you feel like it feels like you're in the fridge. Feels so nice. So we, we do wear a cool shirt.

[B]

Oh, cool.

[A]

That help us stay a little bit cooler?

[B]

Sure.

[A]

But still, but it's still like, like it helps, but it doesn't feel nice. It's very uncomfortable. And you sweat your ass. I mean, that's why, that's why we burn.

[C]

Yeah. Five. Wow. And like obviously from the difference from one of a NASCAR car to a regular car that has single combust, those cambios last longer or are they shorter?

[A]

So we have a sequential shifting.

[C]

Yeah. So it's like. Is that what they call like a dog shifter? Where it's just like boom, boom, boom. Got it.

[A]

So to go.

[B]

Yeah, yeah.

[A]

And it's not, it's not like an age pattern. Yeah, it's a sequential. So if, if right now this thing is like, it's like a little stick like this. So if this thing is neutral, if I go forward, does reverse and then to go to first, I have to go back once again and then back again. So.

[C]

So that's all the way to five.

[A]

Yeah. But but these engines that we have, you know, they makes a lot of power and they carry a lot of RPM that the years are, they're not super, super long. But the, these engines, they go up to, you know, 93, 90, 200.

[C]

Really.

[A]

So, so they just, you just carry a lot of speed. Like actually next week in Michigan, that's probably one of the fastest racetracks that we go, really. And qualifying, we're going to be qualifying at maybe 205 miles per hour. I mean we're gonna be holding the mail. It's super fast.

[C]

How does that feel? 205 miles an hour.

[A]

It's fast, it's fast. But this, it feels, it feels like you're going pretty fast when you're under control. But when you're out of control, like when you get a moment, that's when you're like, oh, there is very fast. Yeah.

[B]

What are the, like, what are you taught when you're getting into like a spin kind of situation like that?

[C]

That's a good question.

[B]

I know that it's dangerous, right, because like everything's flying. You have no control over everything. I've seen race cars just from like highlights, like they do like a tuck in to just make sure they don't break any bones.

[A]

That's when you're already lost. I mean when the car, when you're 100% sure you're going to hit the wall, that's what you do. So actually look, I actually messed up my wrist like eight years ago, seven

[B]

years ago because trying to hold on

[A]

because I was still driving the car and then I hit super hard and I bend the wheel and I messed up my wrist. So once you know that you're going to hit, you have to get off. But it's very difficult because getting off your hands out of the wheel, that's scary too. It's almost like giving up, you know, in a way like you are giving up that, okay, that's it, I'm crashing now. And as a driver you never, you don't want to give up. You never done. But, but you know, you have to kind of like be smart about it too. But there is a lot of things, you know, when you are, let's say that you are going 200 miles per hour in a, in a, in a corner. And if you start spinning like this, a normal person, when the car start doing this, what do you do? What will you do if the car started going sideways like this, I think

[C]

the normal person would break.

[A]

Okay, what would you.

[B]

Yeah, yeah. Break.

[A]

Yeah, you Break, right? So if you're going this way and you break and you're going to keep going, you are going to. You're going to. The second you break, the car is going to go straight and you still have corner, so you're gonna hit the wall. So what we do, and this comes with time and trust and understanding, is that when. When the car starts going like this, you don't break.

[B]

You hit the gas.

[A]

You hit the gas, man. Oh, when this thing goes. Because the rear tires.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

They're spinning, right. So. So you want this guy to. Instead of going like this, to push you down. So you have to stay on it. You have to drive it. You have to drive the shit out of it, pretty much. And sometimes you crash anyway, but many times you save it.

[B]

Oh, my God.

[A]

But it takes experience. Like, very often you have the cop series, you have the O'Reilly series, and then you have the truck series. And many times I watch all these races because it's a lot of fun. I watch them and sometimes I see a driver that is not as experienced and they spin out and I see hit the brakes or they go to a throttle, but then they chicken out and then they hit the brakes and I'm like, idiot. You almost had it right there. You almost had it.

[B]

Is there the most. Is there, like, a dangerous track that. That is known to be like, I guess, the most difficult track or whatever?

[A]

There is not an easy track, you know. But I will say that Bristol Darlington are very, very tough racetracks. Darlington is one of the oldest racetracks in the. In the sport. And it's called. The nickname is the lady in Black. And it just. It just. It's tough to tame, that's how.

[C]

Really?

[A]

Yeah, it's very, very.

[C]

Wow.

[A]

It's very, very difficult.

[C]

Wow, that's. That's crazy. I think I've heard about that race, actually.

[A]

Yeah, it's in South Carolina.

[C]

Is there a race you're looking forward to right now other than Charlotte? Like, one that you. You got your eyes on and you've had your eyes on, other than like the Coca Cola one, but that you have your eyes on?

[A]

You know, I get a question a lot, and I always respond that the next one, because that's the way I

[C]

think just focus on the next.

[A]

I'm focused on the next one, man. Like, all my energy right now. To me, the car color, his hundred, it was amazing. I love it. One of the coolest races of my life for everything that happened. Also around my good friend Cal. I don't know you guys saw that. He very sorry he passed.

[C]

Yeah, sorry.

[A]

So this was a race that I would remember forever. With that being said, I can't stay on the cloud. Right. I have another, another race to go out there and try to win. So I have to go and focus on that one. And, and with that being said, next week we're racing in Michigan. So I can be thinking on Michigan because I have to be in Nashville. Like, like one of, one of the persons that I train with that he does a lot of stuff for rodcourse racing and stuff. He sent me some, some, some stuff for, for the San Diego racetrack the other day. And I told him, brother, I don't care about San Diego right now. Yeah, yeah, I mean, bro, I got this.

[B]

I have. And I'm sorry if this question is overstepping or anything. I'm just so curious. You guys travel throughout the United States. Are you flying private?

[A]

We do.

[B]

Okay. I was gonna say.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Yeah. Because you guys are moving around so much.

[C]

Right.

[B]

Like you need to. I'm just, I just imagine. Yeah. So how does that work? There's no way we're gonn Suarez in the southwest.

[A]

Well, you, you will tonight. You will tonight. Coming back, going to Nashville. But here is the thing, is that our weeks are very short, are very, very short. And then we have to go again and again and again. So the entire team. Oh yeah, they, they, they have the rent a charter. Actually, not just my team, every team, some teams have their own planes, some teams rent charters. And the reason why they do this is because think about it not just on my perspective as a driver, but think about the mechanics, think about the engineers. Think about all these people. These guys are working pretty much almost 24 7. They have one day off. Actually, today is the day off for my mechanics and my engineers. But if they race, if we race on Sunday afternoon and then if we were not flying a charter, we will only get home the next day. So that's half a day that we waste. So half a day for us in, in the world that we live in a long time. So we have to get back on Sunday night because on Monday morning we're already meeting. We're on everything actually in the plane sometimes we're already having conversations on the computers and everything. So it's non stop. You know, you have to be on the go. And we were flying commercial every week. Every single week, we will be losing half a day.

[C]

Yeah, you ain't got time for tsa.

[A]

Yeah. Hey, I did, I did yesterday, yesterday. And I'm not well again tonight. But. But when I travel with the team is. Yeah, it's private.

[C]

Daniel, last question for me. When you are in NASCAR for so long and you have your team, right. I guess it's kind of like a two part question. And you have your team and you've been with them for a while and right now it's like. And honestly I feel like you've been like this. You're so successful at what you do in your sport. Is there other teams looking at you like, we need Daniel. Like, like at F1, they like almost like, hey, we need him. Or they buy them out or they do. Is there contracts involved? Do you have a certain amount of time with your team? Are these things that you think about or, or yeah, like do you worry about like, oh, you know, X team or like, because I know like Michael Jordan owns a NASCAR team too. It's like Michael Jordan reach out. Hey, do you want to race with us? Does that happen?

[A]

Yes, it happens. It happens all the time. Yeah, actually it just happens to me last year. Oh, I just, I just change teams and. And it's something that is fairly common, you know, to happen. You know, there is several teams out there. Some are better than others, some are older than others. Yeah, some are. The upcoming teams are very strong, that they have new blood and new people and things like that. And yeah, it just, it just happens all the time.

[C]

What do you, what do you look in, into in a team? Like, like what are some things that stand out to you?

[A]

So the most important part in a race team is the leadership. Everything comes from the top. If you have a strong leadership, you have a good foundation to possibly build a strong team. I've been fortunate enough that in the last 10 years of career, nine years in the cup series, I've been part of several teams, some very good ones and some very bad ones. So I've been able to see a lot of things and I felt like I'm able to use that experience to tell other people, hey, you're missing this. Hey, you're missing that. The last. From. From 2021 to 2025, I was with one team for five years and actually Pitbull was part owner of this team.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Oh yeah. And we had a great team going. With that being said, a lot of things change. Ownership changed a little bit. Some of the important leaders of the team changed and the team start falling apart. I wouldn't say falling apart, but changing direction. And. And I just didn't like that. Yeah, of course. And. And I Wasn't happy. They were not happy. And, and, and, and we decided to part ways. Right. And, and when I decided to part ways and I came to Aspire More Sports. Aspire More Sports. My new team is the, Is the fastest growing team out there.

[B]

What does that mean?

[A]

So Aspire More Sports is a. Is pretty much a new team. They've been, they've been around to this level of racing, high level of racing. They've been here for like a few years.

[B]

Oh. So, yeah, they're young bucks.

[A]

Young bucks. But they have very strong leaders and they have a partnership with one of the biggest teams that there is. And they have great people and they have a very good structure, and they have all these different things that I've been watching these guys from distance, and I'm like, man, these guys, one year they're here, next year, got it.

[B]

They're climbing.

[A]

These guys are coming. And, and when you see that, you have. You want to jump in the train, right? So that's what I did. You know, I, I saw that. And, and, and we start having conversations and, and I make the, the transition. And, and right now, right now it's looking very good, right? So far. Yeah, it is definitely looking very good, but the team was already in a good trajectory.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And I just jumped in and I felt like I jump in and I was able to help them because there were many things that they were doing right. And there were some other things that I told them, hey, if you guys can do this, we can be even better.

[C]

Wow.

[A]

So I felt like I was able to add, with my experience, add to the trajectory as well, to continue to be better. Because, for example, in the first few years of Aspire More Sports, they have only won one race this year with 13, 14 races in. We have already, as a team, we have already won two. So we're coming. We're coming. And it's very special to be part of a team that is kind of like the new thing. And we have great people. We still have a lot of things to figure out. Of course, we still have a lot of things that we have to still improve. We still have a few issues here and there, but the foundation is strong and, and that's very important.

[C]

I love that. Well, Daniel, it's been a pleasure talking to you, man.

[B]

Wow, bro.

[C]

Speaking with you. Yeah. The whole time when I was. Sometimes I was just like star studded, and I was just thinking to myself, you're gonna do really good in, in the. That thing that we were talking about. That's kind of on the low.

[A]

Oh, yeah.

[C]

You know what I mean? I think you're going to be very great at that.

[A]

Thank you.

[C]

You're a very good speaker. Congratulations on all your success. You're an amazing person, and I wish you nothing but the best in your life, you and your wife. I can't wait to see you again. And I can't wait to see you race. And for everybody who doesn't follow Daniel Suarez on Instagram, please follow him. He's a huge inspiration to not just Mexicans, but to all Latin America.

[B]

That's right.

[C]

And so, just from the bottom of our heart, thank you for making us feel proud.

[A]

Yeah. Listen, man, I always tell this to people. I can win all these races, and I can be all these different things. The biggest. And I'm telling you this from the bottom of my heart, the biggest pride and the biggest gift that I have is to be Mexican and to be representing Mexico and Latin America in nascar, because I felt like I'm one of one. I'm able to represent and connect with people in a way that nobody else in this recon. So I feel very blessed. Thank you so much, guys, for having me. Feliz cumpanos. Have a great day.

[B]

Before you actually leave, our producer Jessica has a question.

[C]

Question.

[B]

I want to make sure she gets that because he has a NASCAR jacket on.

[A]

Oh, yeah.

[C]

You win in Atlanta in 2024. I just love to kind of hear what was going through your head, because it literally. You won by 0.003 seconds. Which of a second. Which is not. Not one second. 0.003.

[B]

You don't even know if you won, I'm sure. Right?

[A]

Do you guys remember. I mean, you already watched.

[B]

Oh, I remember this.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Oh, my God.

[A]

I'm the one on the outside.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

I'm the blue one on the right one.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Look at how close that was.

[B]

Oh, my God. So I can't tell right there who you won. I couldn't tell.

[A]

No, I couldn't tell. Do you guys remember the. The cars when. When McQueen. Like this.

[C]

You did that, huh?

[A]

I did that. I had to look at the difference.

[B]

Oh, right.

[A]

Oh, look at the difference, man.

[C]

And you were on the. You were on the outside, man.

[B]

Yeah, we just kind of came in at the end.

[A]

At the end, man. It was so tight. It was so cool, man. And listen, that's. That's the closest finish 3 wide in NASCAR history ever. Ever.

[C]

There was a Mexican in one of

[A]

those cars or, you know, something. It was something. Very funny, Kaz. Bush Yeah. My dear friend who passed last week, he was the car in the middle. He was the car in the middle. And something that is very funny. The other car is Ryan Blaney. Another good friend, great driver, nascar. It was such a cool finish that NASCAR did, like, a mini documentary with the drivers with the cruise ship, with the spotters and everything, recalling the race and stuff.

[C]

Like, everything that led to that moment

[A]

they did in a movie theater. And I called Kyle and I called Ryan, and I said, hey, guys, I don't know about you guys, but. But if I was you, I would tell Ryan I wouldn't ask her to off because I finished second and third. But since I'm winning, I'm very happy to participate on this.

[C]

Just talking.

[B]

That's a good point, though.

[A]

I'm like, hey, I'm good.

[B]

I'm good. You guys good?

[A]

I'm good.

[B]

Second, third place. You good?

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

What a feeling.

[A]

It's. It's amazing to be part of these moments because it's. You know, I didn't know, like, one.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

I was gonna say, so you get out of your car, like. Or they. Are you talking to your team?

[A]

No, they have to review. The race was over, and they said they didn't know, so they have to. They say, hey, the race is on. The review, I. I was 80, sure that I. That I beat Cal. That was in the middle because I was inching him down.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Inching him forward, but I couldn't see Blaney. Blaney on the bottom. I couldn't see him. So. So I finished first, Blaney finished second, Kyle finished third, and. And they took maybe 30 seconds. The 30 seconds, the longest 30 seconds to review, to review it, because they have to do this, so. So, yeah, it was. It was pretty crazy, man.

[B]

That's not the footage. Is that the actual footage that they review, or do they have more, like.

[A]

No, no, they have more high.

[B]

Okay. Okay.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So this is just for the public, but they have.

[A]

They have. They have some. Some lines and that. They have some lines like this. Crazy. And then they have, like, inches, and then they start breaking apart, see which car hit the line first. And. And that's how. I mean, it took them, like, 30 seconds to do that.

[C]

Oh, man. I can't imagine how that podium felt.

[A]

Yeah, it was.

[C]

It was crazy.

[A]

It was pretty special. It's the first time that I have finished a race without knowing if I won or not.

[B]

So you couldn't do your victory lap?

[A]

I did. I did. But it was funny because we finished and The. And the three of us were kind of like, waiting to see. Yeah. Who got it. And then. And then when they called me, I was like, yeah.

[C]

Oh, my God, Daniel. The last thing. Do you have a message to your fellow NASCAR drivers right now? Kind of like, I'm coming for your ass or something?

[A]

Yeah, man. Well, you know, coming from a. From a win. Coca Cola 600. That. That wasn't just a win.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Like I said, it's been always a very special race for me personally. But everything that happened during the week and weekend with Kyle. Kyle was a very important person for me. He was one of those persons that when I was coming along 10 years ago, he gave me a hand. For me was always very special because when he gave me a hand, he was already a legend. And the way I look at it is this guy didn't really have to help me, and he decided to help this Mexican kid that could barely speak English. So for me, was very tough, man. And to be able to win this race, it has a huge meaning. A huge meaning. Not just that, but it's crazy how destiny works sometimes. But Aspire More. Kyle Busch, he was a driver, obviously, but also he had a race team. A few years ago, that race team, he sold it to Aspire More Sports. So my team operates in the old Cal Bush More Sports building.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

So the fact that my car went to the Carl's old shop with confetti, with the trophy, and we celebrate his look, I got goosebumps. It's amazing and just very special, man. But for the rest of the competitors, I'm gonna kick their butt for Kyle. I love you, brother.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Rest in peace, man. Yeah.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Well, there you have it, ladies and gentlemen, a very special episode. This is one of the most. The episodes, and you can confirm this. I constantly had chills.

[B]

Yeah, me too.

[C]

The storytelling was. Was amazing. Once again, please follow Daniel and all of his success and. And watch him on nascar, because the Mexican kid is taking over, man.

[B]

That's right.

[C]

So he's got a rate.

[B]

Oh, he had. This will be Monday. So the past. But once the. What's the second?

[A]

We are in Michigan.

[B]

Okay, cool.

[A]

Michigan. The fastest. The fastest mile and a half that we go. We are gonna be hauling the mail in Michigan.

[B]

Okay, tune in for that, guys. What an incredible episode.

[C]

Yeah. Thank you, brother. Thank you so much.

[A]

Thank you so much for having me.

[C]

Of course. Next time.

[A]

Next time we're gonna do something like this at the racetrack. Oh, that'd be nice.

[C]

No, that would be sick.

[A]

Oh, my God.

[B]

The 20, the 24 hour series. We gotta do that.

[C]

That would be insane, that. I would love that.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Thank you.

[A]

We have to plan on that.

[C]

Yeah. Okay. Daniel Suarez, ladies and gentlemen.

[A]

Give it up, baby.