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The Dale Jr. Download
Daniel Suárez: Put Me Against The World And I Come Swinging
01:10:44
Dale Earnhardt Jr. welcomes in NASCAR Cup Series driver Daniel Suarez for the first time on the Dale Jr. Download to discuss his historic win in Mexico, what his future holds, and how he rises to pressure-packed moments.
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- [00:00]
Daniel Suarez
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- [00:30]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
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- [00:51]
Daniel Suarez
You know, a lot of people talk about pressure, you know, the playoffs and winning a race and contract year. I'm like, guys, that's nothing like in comparison to what I had to go through. That's nothing like I'm comfortable with pressure. I'm actually, I believe that. I always tell people like, you put me against the wall and I'm gonna come at you sooning.
- [01:13]
Dirty Mo Media
The following is a production of Dirty Mo Media.
- [01:19]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Hey, everybody, it's Dale Jr. And we're back again for another episode of the Dale Jr. Download. Got a great guest coming on for you today as we do this show remote in the middle of the summer and Daniel Suarez is going to come on and share his story and we'll talk a little bit about that win in Mexico with Junior Motorsports and all kinds of stuff. It's going to be a lot of fun. Hadn't talked to Daniel in a while since the win, so let's get after it.
- [01:51]
Dirty Mo Media
All right, everybody, so Daniel's here and.
- [01:54]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
But let's get it. Let's get after it. Daniel, man, I've been looking forward to this conversation. I hope you have. We had a really great experience with you driving our car in Mexico. And so there's a lot of opportunity here and things to talk about. But first thing I want to do is I guess we could talk, you know, about, you know, your experience coming to American motorsports. And I know that you raced in Mexico. There's a NASCAR series that's developed in Mexico that gives you an opportunity to sort of, you know, drive a perimeter stock car that's comparable to what we do at the top three series in nascar. But is it everybody's hope that's racing in that series in Mexico to get to nascar to get the opportunity that you got? Is that what your goal was?
- [02:56]
Daniel Suarez
Well, first of all, Dale, thank you so much for having me, man. It was. I've been wanting to be on your show for a little while, and then when, when, when, when I really. When I got the opportunity to race for you in Mexico, I thought, man, we have to win this race. And then this is gonna be the perfect excuse to. Here we are. Listen, man, in Mexico, just like most countries out there, when you are, when you are, let's say in my. In my situation, when I was 10, 11 years old and I wanted to race and I wanted to compete, there was only one option, and that was racing gors in rod curs. That was the only option. So. So when you. When you're a young kid and you race go kart in rod cars, you are thinking Formula One, you are thinking IndyCar, and you're thinking all these different series. Because ovals, you know, we. We don't have ovals for kids really, until later on. So once you start growing and, and you still understand racing a little bit more, and then you start seeing the different options, you start seeing NASCAR as a very good option. With that being said, when you start to realize all these things, you start to learn that you don't know anything about ovals, which. It was actually my experience. My first oboe race. I didn't do my first oval race until I was maybe 17 years old. And if you think about it, a kid in the United states that is 17 years old already has 10 years of experience in all those.
- [04:42]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
- [04:43]
Daniel Suarez
So it's just way different. And just like in Mexico is the same thing in everywhere in South America. And I was talking to Harvick actually yesterday, and we're talking about Keelan and we're talking about the differences and how experienced he is for his age. And I was telling him as a man, there is no way that there is a kid in South America that is even close to that level of experience in ovals. A skillen. And it's not because they don't want. It's because they don't have the resources to do it because there is no ovals for kids all the way until you get to the NASCAR Mexico level. So it's a journey. And you have to, obviously, once you get to the NASCAR Mexico level, you are aiming, if you're young and you have the ability, obviously you are aiming to the United States that's why, that's why this race in, in Mexico City, it was. It was such a big deal, not just for us as an industry, but also for the, for the, for the local series, because that was the most important race for them, you know, to be able to race in the same stage as, as what they call it, the big boys.
- [05:54]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah, I, you know, I think that the, the path that you took is probably one of the more challenging ones. Um, and so that's why I think, you know, your, your success and, and ability, you know, the things you've accomplished in, in the Xfinity series and now in the Cup Series are remarkable to me because of that. You know, the, the. I don't think people understand how different the discipline is racing on a road course versus an oval. And maybe you can, you know, give your opinion on how the two disciplines, you know, are different, or maybe there's some similarities or things that you do on, you know, you've done in your career that now transferred over to the oval. But we see it time and time again when even IndyCar drivers would come race with us. And now SVG and some, you know, Juan Pablo Montoya, it took him a while to sort of adapt to what he needed to be thinking about and concentrating on at a mile and a half oval versus all the road course racing he did in his life.
- [07:01]
Daniel Suarez
Yeah, I totally, totally agree, Dale. I think that in my opinion, a very good driver in road course is going to be able to change cars and series between in road course and eventually find success. And in obo, it's just a completely different world. I mean, we have seen it. In my opinion, Juan Paulo Montoya is one of the most talented drivers I have seen, and he was super talented in everything that he drove in imsa, in Formula one, I, in nascar. I mean, he. He had it difficult. He had a difficult. I mean, he. He never wore an elbow. It's difficult. It's just very, very difficult because you have to. You have to learn new things, and you are racing against people that are extremely good, and they've been doing this for a very, very long time. And not just that, but you think, oh, I'm going to catch up. Well, the reality is that even the best drivers, they continue to get better, so you never catch up. You're always playing behind. And that's something that is just difficult. And I just wish more people worldwide understood what it takes to raise ovals, because not many people has this perspective, but some people has the perspective of, oh, racing in ovals. Is not that difficult until you do it, until you try it and you understand how difficult it is. And I'm Gonna be honest, 15 years ago, that was. That was the case with me, you know, when I was 17 years old that I was about to try almost. I'm like, man, this should be easy. If I can drive rot schools, this is gonna be easy. Oh, man. Oh, man. So you just. It's a completely different animal. And it has taken me the longest part of my career to continue to get better and better and better. And I believe that every single race, I'm getting better. I'm getting better. I'm getting used to this. I'm used to that. I'm running the wall. I mean, running the wall in South America, I mean, doesn't even exist, you know, like a racer like Homestead, for example. It doesn't exist. Like, it doesn't make sense. But, yeah, it's definitely something different.
- [09:24]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
So, you know, you. We did go to Mexico City, and we won the Xfinity race there, and we saw a really exciting cup race there.
- [09:37]
Dirty Mo Media
I really.
- [09:38]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I enjoyed the hell out of Mexico City. Man, it is. Got a lot of energy and the town and just driving back and forth from the track to the hotel and just being inquisitive and curious. It's crazy how many people are there, how big that city is, how dense it is. Explain to me, I guess, what the area where you grew up, how does it compare or contrast to what I experienced a couple weeks ago when we were racing in Mexico?
- [10:12]
Daniel Suarez
Yeah, so Mexico City is certainly the biggest city in Mexico. I think it's in the top three of the busiest cities in the world with the most population. So it's extremely big and extremely busy of people. Monterrey, Mexico, where I grew up, is the third largest city in the country, which is. It is big, but it's not near as busy as Mexico City. I would say that, you know, if. If I was making a comparison with the United States, it's almost like New York being Mexico City and then.
- [10:53]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You.
- [10:53]
Daniel Suarez
Know, Atlanta being Monterrey, Mexico, or Charlotte, North Carolina, being Monterrey, Mexico, which is. It's a good size, but it's not near as busy as Mexico City. So, you know, and where I grew up, really, we had an entire city. We only had two racetracks, two gokartrucks, and that was it. And at one point, actually, one got destroyed, so we only had one. So. So racing is definitely a thing in South America. But like I said, you know, when you. When you start racing, you. You mainly. You only have the road course path. So this is a little bit different. But, But I'm so, I'm so happy that you and. And the entire industry had to have had experience in Mexico because a lot of people don't know, right. Many people in industry, it was the first time leaving the country. So for them to get a little bit of the flavor of what my country is, the food, the people, how passionate the people is, because they're extremely passionate. I mean, you saw that after winning an extended race. It was pretty special for me. Definitely one of the most special weekends of my career.
- [12:15]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You had so many layers of pressure on you. Not only your own pressure that you put on yourself no matter where you're racing, but also you're taking your. This industry that you've become a part of over the last several years. You're taking that entire industry to your house. You know, you're, you're bringing all of them into your home. You want all of us to go and have a great experience. So you have, you have that bit of pressure or, or concern once you arrive in Mexico. I'm assuming now you're like, hey, all right, all these people that are going to be at the racetrack are going to hope that I do well. Now I have another, you know, the added pressure of trying to deliver something for the people that are here to see me race. So there was just so many avenues of. Of. Of, you know, thought that you probably were experiencing. Talk me through that. I, I, you know, it all worked out really well. Of course, you'd have loved to have won on Sunday, but you did get to treat everybody that was there on Saturday with, with a victory and, and. Which was insane to be a part of, but talk about coming, you know, when even go, even take us back to when this was just a conversation about the series even going to Mexico. You know, what were your emotions around all of that?
- [13:40]
Daniel Suarez
Yeah, Dale definitely was. Was. It was very personal for me because, yeah, you know, when I left my country in the middle of 2011, most people in Mexico, they were telling me that really wasn't an option for a Mexican driver in the US and it was going to be very difficult. And all these different things, like 80% of the comments were like, man, don't go. Just stay here in Las Vegas, Mexico, and Fast forward later, 10 years later, 12 years later, you know, I was able to not just, you know, win races, but win a championship and have success and then come back to Mexico. You know, that part by itself is extremely special. You know, it's almost like, it was almost like a full. A full circle, you know, in a very nice chapter. And then obviously, you know, you know how long these kind of deals, conversations take. I have known of these conversations being in the works for years, and I'm talking three years at least. And he just. He was making progress and then stall a little bit. Making progress and stall a little bit. And he just. I was almost like in the back, just like a cheerleader. Hey, keep going. You know, And. And it was just very special to be a small part in all this process. And obviously, when it was official, I remember getting this call from Jim Morales and Carlos Lim and Chad Sigler from NASCAR and say, hey, it's not signed yet, but it's done, man. We're doing it. And that was a little bit over a year ago. And I mean, I was the happiest person on earth because I knew that I was going to be able to bring the entire industry to my country. You know, I love racing in the United States. I love racing here. I mean, this is my home now. And there is so many places, so many cities in the US that they make me feel like home. With that being said, it's not where I was born. It's not where I grew up. So to be able to bring the entire industry, to bring you and everyone to my home, I feel like almost like I was one of the hosts of the party. So it was extremely special. Very, very special. Obviously, there was a lot of work. I mean, back in January, I was already doing media for the event. I was doing things in Mexico City. So there was a lot of build up into the event that by the time that I got to Friday to have actually race activities, I only felt relief that I was actually going to drive because there was so much built up for six months. So. So, yeah, it was definitely a weekend that I will never forget.
- [16:42]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Talk about the Xfinity race win. I know, you know, you worked really hard to make that happen. But when I walked out onto the racetrack, down in the stadium section where you parked the race car, we had a little podium and all that stuff that was really, really, really neat. But talk about, I guess, you know, the. The feeling, obviously, you know, the emotion starts when you cross the finish line. But getting out in front of all those people there, that I just kind of experienced something similar, I would say, this past weekend with Pocono winning on top of the pit box for the 88, that was so new and unique and special, and I don't know that I'll ever Experience that again. You know, you may go back to Mexico City, win a race in front of your. In front of your fans in nascar, but that had to been pretty cool to be able to get out of that car and stand on that roof. The relief that you were able to deliver something for them.
- [17:47]
Daniel Suarez
Yeah. And by the way, congratulations on your.
- [17:50]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Thank you.
- [17:51]
Daniel Suarez
New win, resume as a cruiser.
- [17:53]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
- [17:54]
Daniel Suarez
Yeah.
- [17:55]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
That's pretty cool.
- [17:57]
Daniel Suarez
Listen, Dale, I've been. I've been racing, and maybe, maybe you have experienced this. I don't know. You're gonna tell me here in a second, But I've been racing for 20 years now, since I was a little kid. And in my entire career, I have never experienced feeling the noise of the fans when I'm actually driving. It's the first time ever. And I experienced that in corner one, two and three after I took the lead and in the stadium. It was unbelievable. I had to talk to myself to concentrate and focus on what it mattered and let all the noise on the side because it was a distraction. And the funny thing is that Carlos Lima, Gio Morales, before the weekend, they told me, daniel, I know that you have raced in many places and you've been fighting for a championship in Miami and you have had all these high pressure moments, but you are about to experience something that is next level. When they mentioned that to me, when they mentioned that to me, I told them, man, it's fine. Like, it's not going to be a big deal. I got it. They were not wrong. Like, it's just a different level. Like the energy of the people. There is something about having 90% of the fans supporting you, and it's just crazy. It's just crazy. I have never experienced that. Maybe you have, but I have never experienced that. And the notion of the people, I mean, I got goosebumps just by talking about it. It was unbelievable. I mean, that feeling is a feeling that I'm going to keep with me forever because it was unbelievable. It's the best feeling I ever had in my life and then be able to refocus my mind what I had to do and then win the race. It was obviously the sherry on top of the cake. But that first feeling when I took the lead, it was unbelievable. I have never felt so much energy and so much noise almost. The fans were right next to me in the car. It was unbelievable.
- [19:59]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah, we were. I was standing in the. In the TV booth for the cup race on, on that Saturday, watching from that point of view by myself. And when you drove into the stadium, section with the lead for the first time. It is exactly like the crowd reacting to the. The band or the singer coming on stage for the first thing, the opening of the concert. Right. The entire audience reacted and cheered as you pull, as you, you know, under. Under green flag. You come through that corner and you're leading the race there. You know, it was. It was wild. I. I could. I was. My booth was probably about 20ft from the stadium and the place was shaking. It was pretty cool. Yeah, it was really cool. It was a great moment. I, you know, we had a lot of fun. We've got this cool relationship. Junior Motorsports. We have this really neat relationship with trackhouse that's developed this year. We have Connor Zillich driving our car and SVG and you and Chastain. And honestly, it's put us in a position to sort of ravel statistically one of our best seasons ever with you winning and the opportunities we'll have going forward. So. And I've enjoyed Justin getting to know Justin even more, owning the cars Tour together. And so, you know, I think that, you know, we really appreciate all the effort you put into that weekend. I know you had a whole lot of things going on. The Xfinity series was just, you know, another part of the pie of the responsibilities, being the host, as you say, because that's absolutely what you were. But to be able to deliver that victory for us, we got taken on that. Right. You brought us on that ride with you to beat that was. I really. I don't know why, but it didn't occur to me until we won that race that you had brought. You put JRM at the head table with you for this experience of being in Mexico City. And so that was so, so neat for us to stand there in victory lane with you, to hold the national flag, to. To. To be a part of that celebration just was so neat to be brought into the. Brought into the room, if you will. So I just want to say thanks for that. And you're so gracious. You're such a professional man. You've been a great friend to me. You've been. I watched you build friendships with all the other drivers in the industry since you've been here racing. You've got your reputation, you know, with the. With the series and with your competitors and your. Your. Your personality is. Is. Is. Is a super one. It's been a lot of fun. So I just kind of want to say. Wanted to say thanks. I mean, we've. We've had some conversations around the wind, but it was a, it was a very special day for us.
- [23:14]
Daniel Suarez
Thank you so much, Dale. Thank you for, for your friendship and for giving me this opportunity. You know, one of the things I'm the most excited about is to be able to, to hang a banner in your shop with, with my name on it and with Mexico City in it. You know, I think that for me is very special, you know, because every single person in the shop, I'm going to look at that, you know, and it's very special, especially because, you know, who knows what happens in the future. But I don't get to race your cars very often. So to be able to, at least until now, do one and have already a bunny in there that says Daniel Suarez, Mexico City, number nine car, Quaker State, is pretty special. So thank you for that.
- [23:59]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah, for sure.
- [24:00]
Hey, I'm TJ Majors. You may know me as the co host for the dirty air show here. And with me is Andrew, who you hear on Ask Junior.
- [24:07]
Andrew
Yeah, tj, I got a question for you too. You know, I always have issues with my cell service when I'm at the racetrack and I hear I'm not alone. There's a lot of people I know that, that have that issues. But I heard you haven't been complaining lately.
- [24:18]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
No, man. I've actually had great service at the track, especially this weekend. Being in Pocono, those mountains, iffy service, sometimes not. It's not a problem with me, man. Consumer cellular has made the switch for me a very pleasant one and I'm glad I did it, man.
- [24:35]
Andrew
Yeah, I mean, I, I like to change things up myself. I would do this, but I just don't like the hassle, you know?
- [24:40]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah. You know, and being at the racetrack too, it can be with all those people, man. Makes it hard to have service. So, you know, just having the luxury of being able to be connected Still. Consumers Hellier has been awesome, man. And you know, not only being connected with RFK and the 6 car, man, I love the scheme on the track. It's great to see. I mean, I can pick it out like when I'm scanning out, I can pick it out like nothing. And it's awesome, man. Really, really happy I made the switch.
- [25:08]
Andrew
Awesome. Could you get me a deal or something?
- [25:11]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Well, good news for you, Andrew. You're in luck. The switch was made very simple for me. It's 100% US based customer service. It took maybe less than 20 minutes, man. And I went for the 2 for 60 plan.
- [25:21]
Dang.
- [25:22]
Andrew
Well, that sounds pretty good. Can you hook me up or something with a deal.
- [25:26]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Of course I can. You can switch to Consumer Cellular right now and get $25 off the with code DJD25. That's DJD25 for 25 off. When you switch to Consumer Cellular, go to Consumer Cellular.com DJD and use promo code DJD25 and tune in on Tuesdays to hear more from me and my thoughts on the Dirty Air Show.
- [25:50]
Dirty Mo Media
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- [26:46]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I'm glad they're there. If I were to build a website, I'd have to have somewhere like that.
- [26:50]
Dirty Mo Media
Sounds pretty good. I like building websites. My buddy's new company, they're looking to get people's attention and get people to visit their website and with the built in SEO tools that Squarespace has, they are able to maximize their reach and grow their business faster.
- [27:05]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Pretty neat.
- [27:06]
Dirty Mo Media
The other feature they really like is Squarespace has everything you need to run an E commerce business, which is important especially for a brand like ours. You know, everything can be done from payment to fulfillment. All with Squarespace. Your business might be brand new, but that won't prevent you from doing business and making money. Head to squarespace.comdale junior for a free trial and when you're ready to launch, use offer code Dale Jr. D A L E J R to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain.
- [27:39]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Well, man, I want to talk to you about, you know, you became a citizen of the us. What's that process like? Why was that important to you? You know, take walk me through that. A lot of, you know, I'll never, I'll never get to experience what that might have been like and how proud of a moment that may have been.
- [27:59]
Daniel Suarez
For You, Yeah, you know, that, that was, it was one of those things that definitely. Extremely proud to do it. And it's one of those things that 10 years ago, I never even thought that I was gonna get to a point.
- [28:20]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
- [28:20]
Daniel Suarez
You know, I remember when I came to the US at first in 2011, I was here with my tourist visa. So with your tourist visa, you don't supposed to live here. So I was actually leaving here for a little while and then coming back, living here for a little while. So, you know, to think that I was trying just to, you know, sneak in to race and then come back and then sneak in to race, come back, and then eventually I had my work visa, and then eventually I had my, my second work visa, and eventually I, I, I was able to get my green card, and eventually. It's a long process. It's a very long process. I mean, I've been here for over 10 years, and I just got it done last year. Yes, I could have done it faster if I wanted to, to do it faster, but still, it's a six, seven year process at the very least. And it's something that I'm very proud of because Mexico, it will be forever in my heart because it's a place where I was born, where I was raised. Obviously Spanish is my native language, my family, and everyone is still down there. With that being said, my adult life, my home is in the United States. This is the place that has given me all these opportunities, and this is a place where I'm planning to build a family one day. And to be quite honest, I don't plan to go anywhere. Maybe one day I would like to have a house somewhere in Mexico for vacation or things like that. But I believe that this is my home now, and now I'm married to Julia. And if one day we decide to have a family, this is going to be your place. And that's why, you know, we had a conversation and we thought, you know what, it's just time to make this step in our lives, because I'm not planning to go anywhere. And, and I felt like the United States is my, is my adult home. So it was, it was quite a process. Honestly, I'm very, very happy that I went through that process, even though that it was long, that it was sometimes a little bit of a headache. I'm glad I went through that process because not a lot of people get to do it. You know, some people, like my kids, one day they're not going to have to do it. You know, they're Going to be pretty much automatic. So. So it was a great experience to understand how the system works. And yeah, it was. It was something that I really, really enjoyed.
- [30:56]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Let's talk about your. Your cup career. I remember, you know, to get there, you came through the Xfinity series racing with Joe Gibbs, won a championship. I remember one of the most. One of the very first races that I worked on a booth as a broadcaster was at Michigan. Oh, yeah, Bush dude. I was like, this guy's for real. He just passed Kyle Busch. Nobody beats Kyle Busch in Xfinity series, especially back then. And so I was like, we're going to take this guy seriously. And then you went to Homestead, and again, like you mentioned, you were running the fence at Homestead is tough enough, much less for a guy who doesn't have a ton of oval experience. And you went out there and you, you not only made the. The, you know, the playoffs and, and were a contender, you went out there and beat the rest of the competition for the championship. I was so impressed. Now you're in the cup series. You're actually, you know, it's. It's wild to me. You've, you've, you know, you've had, I think now, nine season. You're on your ninth season in the cup series, something like that. It's crazy to me that it's already flown by. Yeah, I mean, a good career in the cup series, you know, you're lucky if you get 20 years. You're literally halfway through. You know, what people would consider are very, you know, very good, solid year, career in Cup. You've had success, won some races. You're actually coming up on Atlanta where you've won last year. You know, I guess, you know, kind of characterize what that cup experience and that cup career has. Has meant to you, what it's been like. There was some struggles. You were, you know, kind of with a lot of different teams right out of the gate, not really finding some stability. Stability. But now you're in your fourth or fifth year with trackhouse, where you've had a home for a while and seem to have settled in. So where are you at?
- [32:56]
Daniel Suarez
Yeah, when I went to a national series in 2015, I started and I started working and then my second year in Xfinity series, because back then the Xfinity series was, in my opinion, even more difficult than what it is now because the cop drivers were racing with us every single weekend. It wasn't like. It wasn't like nowadays where a cop driver can only do five races back Then there was no limit. So to win every single exten race that I did, I had to beat cop drivers. So it was more difficult, but at the same time, it was more difficult to win. But at the same time, you learn quicker because you were learning from the best guys. And, and you know, when, when I won the championship, it was. It was amazing. And honestly, I thought to myself, man, you know, we have to go cop racing. Like cop racing is going to be, is going to be great. And then in cop, obviously it's a completely different level because, yeah, you know, cop Xfinity, when you have a rough day, you can still run top 5, top 10 sometimes if you're good enough. In cop, when you have a bad day, you're running 25th, 30th. So the competition is just a completely different level. The best drivers are there. Best cruise ships, best speed crews, best engineers, best of everything, car chiefs, everything. The best is there. So I start to realize that you couldn't rely on talent only. You needed to rely on everything else, too. You need to be good, but you need to have a good group of people around you. You need to have a good leadership of people in the team pushing you and trying to make you better. And there were a lot of things in there. And unfortunately, as you mentioned, I just didn't fit in several organizations. And sometimes, you know how this, how this is, is that sometimes it's about timing, right? And I felt like for some reason my timing was off for, for years. You know, my first race ever, my. The first time I was in the car, in a cop car was in the Daytona 500 in 2017. So, so it was a challenge, you know, it was a challenge to get up, to speak quick. And there were, there were some, some, some challenges in the way I felt like I needed to learn a lot. Extremely quick. And I just felt like I was drinking from fire hose and I just wasn't having enough. And eventually, as you know, I started jumping from team to team and it was a stroll. I feel like I was getting better as a driver. But then it was a lot of instability in the storehouse. I felt like we had a great year going, but unfortunately, in middle part of the year, things were a little cloudy and really I was only stable there for like six to eight months. And then I already knew I was leaving again, so. Because Coster was coming in. So it was. It was just a difficult situation to be all the way until I found Tryhouse. And we started this from scratch pretty much. And they believe in Me at that point, I already had experience, I already knew what I needed and we started building the team around myself and we started having some success. You know, if it wasn't for Richard Shielders racing, we wouldn't have built trous the way that we did. So they were crucial part of the puzzle. And yeah, it's been amazing. You know, we, we have grown a lot, win some races, obviously we always want more. There is things that we have to continue to work on especially, especially in the last year or so. You know, I felt like we have lost a little bit of track and then we hit a home run. But then we're doing consistent and we have work to do. We have work to do. But yeah, it's been a challenge in the cup series to say the least. But I have enjoyed because I have learned so much and I believe that right now as a driver, I believe that I'm in my prime because I believe that everything that I can do on the racetrack and off the racetrack is a very good combination of things and we've been able to use that to be able to take direction with the team. With that being said, it's tough because right now the competition is difficult. Everyone is so close and you are a little bit off and you are 15 to 20th. The last month or so we've been running decent and we are running between 12 to 15 to 16. So we just need a little bit more still.
- [38:01]
Dirty Mo Media
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- [38:57]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
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TJ Majors
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Dale Earnhardt Jr.
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- [39:20]
Andrew
See the details@kubotaorangedays.com this is an ad by BetterHelp. Travis I don't know about you, but it feels like there's a stigma around mental health when it comes to men.
- [39:32]
TJ Majors
Yeah, it's kind of like you're kind of brought up that men, you know, keep your emotions in check. You don't show tears. You kind of, you're always trying to stay tough.
- [39:39]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Right.
- [39:39]
Andrew
I mean, men face immense pressure today. It's no wonder that 6 million men in the US suffer from depression every year. And it's often undiagnosed.
- [39:48]
TJ Majors
And it's okay to struggle. It's okay to say, you know, I need help. I think admitting that is a strength. And I think there's one way to help yourself out, and that's through BetterHelp.
- [39:57]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Right?
- [39:57]
Andrew
I mean, I've used BetterHelp. And if you're a man and you're feeling the weight of the world, talk to somebody. BetterHelp is the world's largest online therapy platform, having served over 5 million people globally.
- [40:09]
TJ Majors
It's convenient, too. You know, you don't have to go into somebody's office and talk to them. You can do it on your time, remotely, from your apartment, from your house, on the couch, where you're comfortable and you're not nervous.
- [40:18]
Andrew
It's always. And you can even message people. That's one thing I've really felt beneficial from. Even if you don't have time to get on the phone and talk, the message ability is still really, really helpful.
- [40:29]
TJ Majors
And it's also nice that if you realize, you know what, this isn't exactly what I need. They have all kinds of therapists you can switch. You can make that change. You're not stuck with that same therapist for the entire time.
- [40:37]
Andrew
Absolutely. As the largest online therapy provider in the world, BetterHelp can provide access to mental health professionals with a diverse variety of expertise. Talk it out with BetterHelp, our listeners.
- [40:49]
TJ Majors
Get 10% off their first month@betterhelp.com Dale Jr. That's Better H. Lp.com Dale Jr.
- [40:57]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You know, I was watching your career in the cup series and you had like a, I'd call it a stopgap season with the Gaunt Brothers, and I when you announced that that was going to be your experience for the year, listen, nothing, you know, they did a, they did as an admirable of a job as possible being a smaller team. But you knew. You knew on the other side of that was this track house opportunity. Right? You knew there was a plan beyond this, but you knew that year was going to be a tough one.
- [41:33]
Dirty Mo Media
Take.
- [41:33]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Take me.
- [41:34]
Dirty Mo Media
Take me.
- [41:35]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I was watching you throughout that season, man, and I was wondering how you were going to handle that, because there were going to be some tough, tough Sundays and some hard, hard, sleepless nights.
- [41:48]
Daniel Suarez
Yeah, Dale, you know, for me, that was. That was really, you know, I was coming from racing for Gibbs for a couple years, and then that was a struggle. That was a struggle in different directions. And then sure has. I say, man, we're finally heading in the right direction. But unfortunately, the timing wasn't right for me. And then. And then we went to this project that Toyota had to build this team, and everything looked amazing. On paper at the time, trash wasn't even on the table for me. I wanted to do this project for Toyota because when I was with Toyota in Gibbs, we had a great ride, we had a great journey together. And they. They told me about this project that they had and that they were very invested in the project. With that being said, as we all remember, in 2020, the pandemic hit. So every single thing that we had planned, on paper, everything went down. Every single sponsor that we had planned went down. Every single opportunity, business to business, went down. So, you know, if we were going to be running just to say something with $10 million a year, we ended up running with three. So it was. That was a test for me personal, to see, as you mentioned, to see how bad I wanted this. And it was very, very difficult to know that it did not matter how hard I worked during the week in the simulator, watching film in the weekend, it did not matter. I was not going to be faster than 25th or than 22nd, especially with those cars back then, because we didn't have these cars that are all pretty equal.
- [43:43]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
- [43:44]
Daniel Suarez
So it was difficult, man. It was difficult. And I took it as a test for myself. I thought to myself, you know what? I'm gonna give everything I got regardless if I can only fight for 25th. Because this is gonna. This is going to keep me on my game for my future opportunity. If I just let my guard down just because it doesn't really matter. We run 26 or 28, that's not going to keep me sharp for my next year. So I work super hard. I mean, to the point, Dale, that my very last race with them, the very Last race with them. You know how it is. Very last race of the year and everyone disappears. On Monday, I told them no, where, where finish the cycle. We're going to have a competition meeting on Monday after the last race of the season. I promise to you. I push the team. The team didn't even have competition meetings at first. I told him we are going to have competition meetings and we're going to talk about this, we're going to talk about that. We're going to try to make. To squeeze. To squeeze the lemon as hard as possible. And on Monday, after the last race of the season, we had our competition meeting. I did my report and I said, okay, guys, thank you very much. We closed the cycle, but I did everything I could have done to make the best possible, and I felt like that kept me sharp for the next opportunity.
- [45:09]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah, I'll say this, man. I wasn't sure you were going to survive it, you know, and again, I don't think a lot of drivers would have been able to not only, I guess, grind out a season like that, but try to, like you say, get. Get it to perform at its best possible peak performance all the way to the very finish. And that was that. That to me speaks to your. Your character, your determination, you know, and not gonna give up. I'm not going back. You know, you wanted to make this work. You wanted to see this through. And I think that's that right there is why you're still, you know, that's why you found. That's what got you to be able to see the stability that you've had with Trackhouse and got you into a program that's. That's lasted you, you know, all these years, now found some stability. Well, that said, though, you know, the Trackhouse deal, you're in a contract year, you're in a must situation, must win situation with the playoffs. You're coming into Atlanta. I know that you probably had this one circled on your calendar. What's the mentality? What's the attitude at this point in the season?
- [46:26]
Daniel Suarez
Yeah, they'll definitely. There is a lot of things. A lot of things have happened in the last 10 months or so. I love Trout House. This is my home. And I'm forever thankful for everything that Justin and Tryhouse and Dynaris at the time and a lot of people have done to build this amazing place Lately. It's been a little bit of a struggle, not just on the track, but also off the track in a few things. And right now we're in a most win Situation. We're in a multi situation. The good thing about that is that we have, we have good racetracks for us. You know, Atlanta is coming up. We have road courses coming up. Chicago, we have been very strong. Mexico City, you know, like, that was also obviously circle. I believe that in Mexico City, we were up top five to a top ten car if things were playing our way. So we just have to make sure that we execute a good race when we have the right car to win the race, because you know how it is.
- [47:38]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
- [47:38]
Daniel Suarez
You know, you. You have. You have a winning car five times and you win two races, you know, and you. Sometimes things go your way, sometimes on. And we have to make sure that we control everything that we can. So. And that's all we can do. That's all we can do. I'm. I'm very focused on the nest on the next task that right now is Atlanta and see what happens. See what happens. I'm happy and I'm comfortable where I am. Definitely. I want more. I want to be winning races, but I have confidence on my group in the 99 that we have what it takes to be able to get it done.
- [48:21]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Obviously you're not going to announce any of your future plans on this podcast, but I do know how the system works and there's, you know, for the next year, whatever the plans may be, those are decided in this part of the year, new contract, whatever the plan may be, all of that is probably coming up to the finish line. Things need to be known and understood before the fall gets here. When do you think that you'll have news to share with the industry and all the fans about what, what your future looks like?
- [49:06]
Daniel Suarez
I would say it's not going to be. It's not going to be soon, soon, but it's going to be maybe in a, in a. In a couple months. Few months. We see what happens. There is still a lot of things on the air right now. There is just some things that I'm just a little bit uncomfortable in a few areas, in a few things, the way that a few things have been handled. But like I said, I love Truck House and I love this team. And this team for me has been my best home in the cup series. And I want to have more success with this team and I want to see this team successful regardless if I'm in it or not. But. But we see what happens. I mean, right now, honestly, everything is an option. But. But I think. I think there is a lot of things that honestly, I don't even know the answer. All I know is that things are going to. Things are going to. Things are going to work out. They always do. You know, I'm working very, very hard. The team is doing their job, the 99 team and what an amazing group. I have my crew chief, mechanics, my picu. I have an amazing group. I have an amazing group and we see what happens. But there is still a lot of things on the air and I hope that everything works out in a way that everyone is happy.
- [50:46]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah, for sure. Well, I think you're, you know, in terms of ability and talent, I think that you definitely belong in the cup series. And I'm sure I like that attitude, man. I always, always try to keep that same attitude that things, things will find a way to sort themselves out in a, in, in a, in a, in a place where I'll be happy. Right. And, and sitting around and worrying yourself to death isn't really going to solve anything. And you can't be productive in the moment, too, when you got your mind on something that's really out of your control, at least at the moment.
- [51:24]
Dirty Mo Media
Hey, tj, you know that I got my own Chevy dealership down in Tallahassee, Florida. We're part of the Hendrick Automotive Group.
- [51:30]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yes, I have heard of Darren Hart Jr. Chevrolet.
- [51:32]
Dirty Mo Media
I bet you'd be surprised on what type of Chevrolet vehicles we specialize in.
- [51:37]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
If I had to guess, I'm gonna say it would probably be Chevy trucks.
- [51:39]
Dirty Mo Media
Well, we definitely sell plenty of those, but actually we're really big in commercial vehicles. We actually sell a lot of crane trucks for the number one seller actually in crane trucks.
- [51:51]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Okay, I definitely did not see that coming.
- [51:53]
Dirty Mo Media
Yeah, pretty neat, huh? So for any of our listeners shopping for commercial vehicles, here's some things you need to know about us at Dalenhardt Jr. Chevrolet. We have hundreds of trucks in stock, so you can find what you need fast. And we have people there that can help you with custom orders. So if you want to build the exact vehicle you need, we can do it. We offer complimentary delivery anywhere in the continental U.S. plus, Hendrick Automotive Group is the nation's top rated dealer group for online reputation. Visit dalejrchevy.com and click Commercial to explore the wide range of available commercial vehicles. Our team at Dillon Hart Jr. Chevrolet will give you a world class experience. Chevrolet together. Let's drive.
- [52:39]
Andrew
Travis, I see you're on the Internet a lot. I always see these Ohio State tweets. Man, you got an online presence.
- [52:44]
TJ Majors
I do love to tweet a lot. I Live on my cell phone, unfortunately.
- [52:47]
Andrew
Do you worry about your data getting out there to people that you don't want it to get out to?
- [52:52]
TJ Majors
Constantly. I mean they already know like your birthday and stuff. But then you got these toll road text messages. I don't know what's getting out there.
- [52:57]
Andrew
Right. Exactly. Well, what if I told you I have a solution for you?
- [53:00]
TJ Majors
I'm listening.
- [53:01]
Andrew
Delete me makes it easy, quick and safe to remove all your personal data online at a time when surveillance and data breaches are common enough to make everybody, you and me, vulnerable.
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TJ Majors
I kid you not. These websites, it's kind of scary because I once matched with this girl online dating app. She asked if I was married. I told her no.
- [53:19]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Why?
- [53:19]
TJ Majors
Why are you asking? Well, she had searched my name and a website pulled up and said that I was married. And I'm like, no, never been married, never engaged. But it's scary that these websites kind of have information, some of it real, some of it not. And it's just out there for everybody.
- [53:32]
Andrew
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- [54:15]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
The in season tournament. So I just talked to Chase Briscoe yesterday and I was surprised by his reaction. Well, I thought, you know. So first off, I have a couple of things I'll say. I don't believe any driver that says they don't know what it is or what it pays. I think they're full of and. But I think if I was in it or in your shoes, I probably wouldn't worry myself with it in this first week or two. I would just race my race. It's, you know, if I get. Because Atlanta's. You can't really. What are you going to do? You got to go out there and win the race. Right. And if I'm sitting there in round three and I'm still alive then I might go now I might really want to pay attention. Now I really want to, because a million bucks. Exactly. How are you thinking about this?
- [55:19]
Daniel Suarez
I, I completely agree with everything that you say, Dale, because at first when they came with this program, I was like, ah, we deal with it whenever we get there. And I promise to you that. I was like, yeah, it's a lot of money, but we deal whenever we get there. I'm the kind of person, man, that I, I love to. I love to. To live one day at a time, and I love to be present. You know, life is too short not to be enjoying the present moment right now. And, and, and when they told me, yeah, man, that thing is going to start in June. We deal in June. So now we're in June, and I think it's going to be very exciting. You know, my first battle is going to be actually in Atlanta with, With my amigo Boba Wallace. So I cannot beat him. I may put him on the wall, but, you know, it's going to be one of those things they'll. Where you're not gonna be paying attention to who you're racing against the entire race until the last 30 laps. Yeah, the last 30 laps you're gonna see, hey, what is this guy? To make sure I keep. I stay ahead of this guy. Yeah, but, but, yeah, I think it's gonna be a lot of fun and I give a lot of credit to, to, to everyone involved to making it happen. I think it's gonna be fun to watch.
- [56:43]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah, I do too. There's an alternate broadcast that Larry McReynolds and Jeff Burton are going to do where they'll focus mainly on this, this, this, this bracket each week. So for fans that kind of want to have all of that going on, you can watch our, you know, TNT broadcast of the race and then have the alt broadcast for the tournament. I'm going to fill out a bracket. So that'll be pretty fun. But, yeah, I'm hoping that, you know, I. Listen, I think we all understand where nobody's fooling anybody here. I think we all know that each driver, specifically, you have a, you know, you have a lot of things going on. Like, you know, you got to be thinking when you got to be thinking playoffs, you got to be doing everything you can for the ultimate prize, which is the championship at the end of the year. And you're, you know, so you might not, you know, obviously prioritize this m Season tournament, but at some point, right, you might, you might take stock in it. You might, you know, you might, you know, check in and pay attention to what's going on and it might matter. Nobody's, you know, nobody's going to disagree with that. But I'm, I'm very excited about it. I. I think it's a neat little layer and I'm hopeful. I'm glad, I'm glad for your response. I'm glad for Chase's response about it. He said that he is in a. In a. Him and Noah Gragson are head to head this weekend and they were texting immediately after Pocono. Yeah. Wrecking each other out. So that's cool, you know, and we need the drivers to sort of at least support it, you know, and, and get the fans to engage in it, because it's going to be a cool deal for them. You mentioned Bubba, man, talk about some of the drivers who have been really supportive to you in your journey, man, because I can't. You know, I find your story really fascinating because there's a lot of things I can go out and I can experience almost anything I want. But there's certain things that you've done in your life that I'll never have the chance to explore or understand. I'm never going to move to another country. Right. And create an entirely new life for myself. I'm not going to understand, challenge or experience the highs and the lows from what that might. That might produce. I'm never going to have to go to a place that's far away and try to learn how to build relationships and trust and who to trust, who's telling me the truth about what's going on, you know, and so talk about some of the people in the industry that have really put their arm around you and supported you throughout these years.
- [59:30]
Daniel Suarez
Yeah, that's an amazing question, man. Let me start with saying that every driver out there, every single driver yourself, every single driver out there is unique, has a unique journey and has a. Has had. Has had to go to different obstacles to make it to the top. Even though that your father was a legend, you had a lot of challenges that you had to go through. Even though that Chase Eliot's father was an amazing legend of the sport, he had to go through a lot of difficulties to be able to go through it and without pressure on their shoulders. So every driver has different. A different journey. And that's. That's the beautiful thing about it, is that we all are different. With that being said, I'm just extremely different because I, you know, obviously came from a different country, as you mentioned, different language, learning everything, leaving my parents, leaving my friends, you know, all the people that I grew up with, every single friend that I grew up with, I don't have it here. They're in Mexico. Family, cousins, aunts, uncles, everyone is in Mexico. I don't have direct family in the United States. I have very close friends now. But that transition when you are a 19 year old kid is not easy. It's not easy. I remember when I was 19, calling my mom with no money, struggling just to stay afloat, crying, crying because I felt lonely. I felt that I didn't know if I was doing the right thing and my mom was crying with me on the phone and I couldn't afford to fly my mom over for a weekend to spend some time with me because it was expensive. So all these different challenges really built a person with a purpose to be able to get to a point. And, and I remember, you know, I have, I have a special relationship with, with Joe Dogano, with Chase Elliott, with Blaney, with Bubba Wallace, with Cora Joy, with some of these guys because these, some of these guys that I just mentioned and a few more, I have known them since I couldn't even communicate. And for me that's special, right, because they made the Daniel that was just lonely and just trying to figure it out in a new world. And they know the Daniel of today as well. Many people knows me from the last handful of years, but not a lot of people knew me back in 2011, 12 and 13 when I couldn't even communicate. And that for me is very special. That's why I have a good bond with some of these drivers and then people in the industry, you know, so many great people in nascar. So many great people in nascar. I would say that on top of that list is Steve Phelps. You know, Steve Phelps, for me, I mean, these guys to me is like family. I mean, I love this guy. I mean, he was in my wedding. Steve Phelps and I, you know, we built actually a very, very strong bond in 2020 because he, he was a true friend. He was a true friend. Just giving me support, staying me to stay positive, to keep pushing, things were gonna work out. And, and he was one of the reasons why I kept pushing with everything I got. You know, Ben Kennedy, also, I raised against him in the K N series in, in my early years. So we, we met also in, you know, in that era when, when I was just lonely, just trying to figure it out. So many, so many, so many great people. You know, for me, obviously, once I start making it into a national series, to be able to, to meet you to meet Jimmy Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick, all these heroes of mine. When I was in Mexico, watching you guys on tv, it was unbelievable. And, you know, and I remember my first year racing in cop when Jimmy Johnson was inviting me to ride bicycle with all you guys, I felt super special, you know, and for me, those are very special moments because it's an American dream. You know, a kid coming from Mexico with nothing, all of a sudden, a handful of years later is hanging out with the heroes that I thought they were superheroes watching only on tv. So it's been an amazing journey, man. I'm very blessed, man.
- [64:24]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I tell you, I remember listening to you a couple years ago talk about how hard you worked to learn a new language, right? And to learn how to speak English and try to. How much effort you put behind that. You knew that those things as a spokesman, as a race car driver, you had to. You had to excel at learning that language in a unique way. And you had to. You had to. You can speak to it better than I can, but I just remember you. You talking about how personal you took that, how important you knew that was for you to be able to. Not only just be able to communicate right, until. Until a crew chief, what the car is doing and those type of things, but you knew as a race car driver and an athlete and a spokesman for partners and sponsors that your. Your ability to communicate was going to be how you made a living. Talk about that.
- [65:29]
Daniel Suarez
Yeah, that was definitely. I would say that that was probably one of the biggest challenges of my life, to have to learn the language without classes because I couldn't afford classes, to have to learn the language quick and to know that everything was on the line if I didn't learn the language. And to know that all the sacrifices that my family had to make to give me an opportunity were on the line if I couldn't communicate. And when you are 19 years old, you already old enough to understand that when your father sells his business and put your mother's home on a mortgage to continue to support you, you understand that that's a very big deal. So that was. That was big pressure moment for me. You know, a lot of people talk about pressure, you know, the playoffs and winning a race and contract year, I'm like, guys, that's nothing, like, in comparison to what I had to go through. That's. That's nothing, you know, like, I have to have big pressure moments in my. Early in my career that, like, I'm comfortable with pressure. I'm actually, I Believe that. I always tell people like, you put me against the wall and I'm going to come at you swinging. I feel comfortable in that, in that situation. And I have come to realize they are that. That, you know, at first I was only thinking, man, I have to learn the language and I have to, you know, do my career and do everything I can and be the best possible racing driver I can possibly be. You know, coming from Mexico and doing all these different things, I have come to realize that this is. This is bigger than just racing. I have come to realize in the last handful of years that there is thousands of people that come to this amazing country exactly the way I came, just looking for an opportunity, just looking for a shot, just looking for a dream. And I start to realize that I was being an example not just to future racing drivers, but to people coming to the country. And I start to connect with many people because I was able to make it into a sport that there is not many international drivers, into a sport that is difficult, into a sport that, as we spoke earlier, ovals are difficult. So, you know, for me, that I have take. I have taken that very serious and trying to give people hope and guidance in. Always continue to push. It doesn't matter what happens. Always put one foot in front of the other. You know, if I tell you, dale, let's go climb that mountain tomorrow, you may tell me, man, you're crazy, man. But sometimes if you break that mountain in pieces, maybe in two weeks we can climb the entire thing. So that's what I tell people all the time. And hey, don't see the entire mountain. Break it into parts and put a plan together. And then you put the whole execution plan together and trying to execute it the best possible way. And before you know it, you're going to be three quarters into the mountain. So for me, I have taken that very personal and trying to help other people coming from, from different countries to, to be successful because. Not because you are the first, not because nobody has done it before, it means that it's not, it's not doable. It just means that it's going to be difficult.
- [69:30]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
- [69:31]
Daniel Suarez
But it doesn't mean that it's not doable.
- [69:34]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Damn, dude, that's powerful, man. I. I love that, breaking the mountain down. I don't know a better way we can go in this thing than, than with that message right there. Because, you know, everything. I've always enjoyed, you know, watching you because I don't know how difficult this has been for you. Only you know that. But I knew it wasn't easy, and I knew you're. We're tougher than people give you credit for. I knew that you were going to have to be. To make it. You're going to have to work harder than most people, maybe, maybe work harder than anybody to get the same opportunities that the other drivers around you were getting. I wonder if that's why, you know, when you did get, you know, backed into a corner and, you know, like the McDowell deal at Phoenix and other, you know, you come out swinging like you have to. You had to show everybody that you weren't going to be pushed around and that you wanted this so badly that you were going to fight for it physically. But, man, it's been a. It's been a lot of fun to watch and it is inspiring. I've got. I enjoyed becoming friends with you over the last several years, but I really enjoyed getting to kind of see it through a new lens with our experience in Mexico City and Xfinity win. And I'm glad that worked out the way it did for you because you deserve it. You have busted your ass to really create opportunities for yourself. You deserve everything coming to you and everything that you've gotten up to this point. I don't know why anybody wouldn't be pulling for you to continue that success. And. And I appreciate you not only just being a great dude, but giving us some time to talk and get to know you better. Your story's awesome and I hope you keep telling it because you do. You do inspire people and I know you know that. But I want more people, all the people that are listening to this show today, to know the work you've done and the person you are and the character you are because you're a good dude. I appreciate you, Daniel. Thanks for giving us some time today.
- [71:48]
Daniel Suarez
Thank you so much, Dale. Really, really means a lot. You can awards and hopefully we can do it again soon.
- [71:54]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Absolutely, buddy. Go out there and win some races. Go get that championship, man. Have some fun.
- [71:59]
Daniel Suarez
Thank you so much, my friend. I appreciate you. See you soon.
- [72:02]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Appreciate you. You bet. See you this weekend.
- [72:14]
Dirty Mo Media
Hey, it's Dale Jr. Did you know that we've got brand new merch from our star stripes and beers collection available now? We've got tanks, teas, beach towels and more. Just in time for. For summer. Check it all out at shop.dirtymomedia.com Travis.
- [72:28]
Andrew
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- [72:39]
TJ Majors
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- [72:47]
Andrew
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- [72:54]
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- [73:02]
Andrew
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TJ Majors
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- [73:15]
Andrew
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- [73:41]
TJ Majors
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- [73:53]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Com. All right, so that's the conversation with Daniel Suarez. So I've kind of been friendly with Daniel for a couple years. All the years we raced against each other and, you know, raced against him in the Xfinity series as an owner and lost the championship to him. But, you know, it's just so fun to hear his story. I think I really enjoy it coming straight from him. It's really cool. He's worked really hard. And I was so, you know, I, I had a damn good time in Mexico and I thought, and I knew, you know, I, I knew Daniel wanted us to and I knew it was important to him. And so I don't know, man, I can't imagine what that must have felt like for him to, to have, have that I would be so anxious, so worried that everything was, you know, going to be good and the experience would be good and, you know, I don't know. He's just such a great guy. He's worked so hard. I'm glad he got to come on the show. I'm glad we got to talk to him. I hope that the people that are listening to this show learn something new about Daniel and gained a goo. Gained a new or more appreciation for the. The path that he took to and the work that he did and had to do that a lot of us never had to worry about or do ourselves to be able to get a chance to be successful in nascar. And he's here. He's. He's. He's rooted, he's committed. He is in a difficult situation and a contract year where there's a lot of moving parts at track house and we're all kind of wondering where everything's going to net out at the end of the season going into next year. So it'll be interesting to kind of see where Daniel ends up in all of those moving parts. But, you know, I hope that he does end up in a, you know, in a situation that's. That's competitive and that he can continue to go out there and. And try to achieve his dream and his goals because he's a good, good, good guy, man. So thankful for him. Thanks. Thankful that we got him on the show and we got to talk to him. You know, we don't get a lot of the current guys on here as often as maybe we should, but it's pretty, pretty fun conversation. The teardown was live on YouTube this past Sunday and Twitter as well. Jeff Gluck and Jordan Bianchi broke down everything from the Pocono race and had some great, great, kind words about the prime broadcast. Thank you, Jeff and Jordan. Every Sunday, they break down the race right after it happens. Great listen on the teardown, so go check it out. Denny Hamlin returned from Pocono running second after taking a week off for the birth of his son. Door bumper clear also dropped on Monday. They were joined by Kelly Crandall, an excellent member of the media group that covers our sport. And tomorrow we will have another episode of Bless yous Heart with my wife Amy. We had also our Tuesday episode of Dirty Air. And I had Connor Zillich as my. As my co host. TJ took a break and Connor came on to talk about the Xfinity race. So that was a lot of fun. And Sunday, the fourth episode of Becoming Earnhardt Drops. We've gotten three out already. And this is a focus on the 1980 season. I hope you're listening to it. I think we did a really awesome job with this series. And so, yeah, I think the fourth of six episodes is going to be out this Sunday. And yeah, that's it. Let's. Let's bring it home. We'll see you all tomorrow. For bless your heart.
- [78:19]
Dirty Mo Media
Check out DirtyMomedia on Instagram, Facebook X and TikTok.
- [78:25]
Daniel Suarez
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