Daniel Suárez, driver of the #19 Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing, has won his first NASCAR Xfinity Series championship on Saturday with a race win in the Ford EcoBoost 300 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
The 24-year old held off JGR teammate Erik Jones and JR Motorsports’ Justin Allgaier in a battle for both the race victory and the championship. Suárez became the first driver to win in the series’ new Chase format for 2016.
Suárez started on the pole for the race, while fellow Chase contenders Elliott Sadler, Jones and Allgaier qualified 2nd, 3rd and 6th, respectively. On lap 4, Brandon Hightower spun in turn one, which resulted in the first caution of the day. Kyle Larson took the lead on lap 23. Ryan Reed went into the grass on lap 25 to cause another caution. The race resumed on lap 33 with Larson leading until Suarez took the position two laps later. As green-flag pit stops commenced on lap 89, a loose tire from Brandon Jones’s car rolled onto pit road; he was penalized shortly after. Prior to a caution for fluid on the track a lap later, Allgaier and Ryan Sieg also led laps, though Larson led at the caution.
Larson lost the lead on lap 96 to Ty Dillon, who battled with Suárez for the lead. Brennan Poole brought out another caution when he spun out in turn two on lap 126. On the next restart six laps later, Suárez and Dillon continued to fight for the lead until lap 137.
On that lap, the fifth caution of the night occurred when Reed spun while attempting to pit for new tires. Although he was able to recover, Jordan Anderson, attempting to avoid Cole Whitt’s car in front, swerved and crashed into Jeremy Clements, causing Anderson’s #46 car to catch fire. The race was red-flagged for four minutes.
A caution for debris happened on lap 160. On the ensuing restart restart, the four championship drivers ran in the top four, though Suárez led the entirety of the green flag run leading up to the final caution of the night on lap 192.
Ray Black Jr. spun to force another restart, which came with five laps to go. On the final restart, Whitt elected to stay out and became the leader, while Sadler pitted for just two tires to claim the second spot on the front row for the restart. As the cars approached the start, Whitt struggled to get moving, collecting Jones and Allgaier in the process. Suárez was able to get by Sadler and hold him off to win his third race of the season and the championship. Sadler finished 3rd to record his third runner-up points finish in the Xfinity Series, followed by Allgaier (7th) and Jones (9th).
“It’s very hard to put into words,” Suarez stated in Victory Lane. “I’m speechless right now. I’m just very proud of everyone and thankful to have the family that I have, my mom, my dad. They gave me all the tools to be here right now. They put me in a car even when we didn’t have the support or the racing background. They supported me, and right now we are just living a dream.”
Suárez became the first non-American driver to win a NASCAR national series championship and the third member of the NASCAR Next program to do so, after Chase Elliott’s Xfinity Series title in 2014 and Erik Jones’ Camping World Truck title in 2015. He is also the second first-time NASCAR champion in 2016; Johnny Sauter won the Truck title on Friday. Suárez’s title is the second series championship for JGR, the first since Kyle Busch’s 2009 title, and the fifth owner’s championship for the team.
Whitt’s decision to stay out drew criticism from fans and drivers, Jones deeming the move “disrespectful.” Whitt apologized for the action and called it “just a crappy situation.”
Suárez concluded the 2016 season with 4,040 points, a two-point advantage over Sadler. Allgaier’s 3rd-place points finish is his best since 2011, while Jones, who will move up to the Cup Series in 2017, had 4,032 points. Ty Dillon, who finished 2nd in the race, rounded out the top five in points with his third consecutive top-five championship finish.
Race results
| POS. | CAR # | DRIVER | MANUFACTURER | STARTING POS. | LAPS | LAPS LED |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 19 | Daniel Suárez | Toyota | 1 | 200 | 133 |
| 2 | 3 | Ty Dillon | Chevrolet | 11 | 200 | 17 |
| 3 | 1 | Elliott Sadler | Chevrolet | 2 | 200 | 1 |
| 4 | 22 | Ryan Blaney | Ford | 4 | 200 | 0 |
| 5 | 2 | Austin Dillon | Chevrolet | 5 | 200 | 0 |
| 6 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | Chevrolet | 6 | 200 | 6 |
| 7 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chevrolet | 7 | 200 | 23 |
| 8 | 62 | Brendan Gaughan | Chevrolet | 14 | 200 | 0 |
| 9 | 20 | Erik Jones | Toyota | 3 | 200 | 3 |
| 10 | 98 | Aric Almirola | Ford | 15 | 200 | 9 |
| 11 | 6 | Darrell Wallace Jr. | Ford | 9 | 200 | 0 |
| 12 | 39 | Ryan Sieg | Chevrolet | 23 | 200 | 0 |
| 13 | 44 | J. J. Yeley | Toyota | 19 | 200 | 0 |
| 14 | 88 | Alex Bowman | Chevrolet | 8 | 200 | 0 |
| 15 | 33 | Brandon Jones | Chevrolet | 10 | 200 | 0 |
| 16 | 16 | Ryan Reed | Ford | 13 | 200 | 0 |
| 17 | 5 | Cole Custer | Chevrolet | 18 | 200 | 0 |
| 18 | 14 | Cole Whitt | Toyota | 16 | 200 | 3 |
| 19 | 28 | Dakoda Armstrong | Toyota | 25 | 199 | 0 |
| 20 | 11 | Blake Koch | Chevrolet | 12 | 199 | 0 |
| 21 | 01 | Ryan Preece | Chevrolet | 26 | 199 | 0 |
| 22 | 4 | Ross Chastain | Chevrolet | 20 | 199 | 0 |
| 23 | 86 | Brandon Brown | Chevrolet | 31 | 198 | 0 |
| 24 | 51 | Jeremy Clements | Chevrolet | 27 | 198 | 0 |
| 25 | 18 | Matt Tifft | Toyota | 39 | 197 | 0 |
| 26 | 15 | Travis Kvapil | Ford | 35 | 196 | 1 |
| 27 | 48 | Brennan Poole | Chevrolet | 17 | 196 | 0 |
| 28 | 07 | Ray Black Jr. | Chevrolet | 30 | 195 | 0 |
| 29 | 0 | Garrett Smithley | Chevrolet | 28 | 195 | 0 |
| 30 | 13 | Brandon Hightower | Dodge | 34 | 195 | 0 |
| 31 | 78 | B. J. McLeod | Ford | 29 | 195 | 0 |
| 32 | 99 | Jeff Green | Ford | 40 | 194 | 0 |
| 33 | 25 | Josh Reaume | Chevrolet | 38 | 193 | 0 |
| 34 | 97 | Josh Bilicki | Chevrolet | 37 | 189 | 0 |
| 35 | 24 | Corey LaJoie | Toyota | 21 | 167 | 0 |
| 36 | 46 | Jordan Anderson | Chevrolet | 22 | 134 | 0 |
| 37 | 52 | Joey Gase | Chevrolet | 33 | 87 | 0 |
| 38 | 90 | Mario Gosselin | Chevrolet | 36 | 49 | 0 |
| 39 | 40 | Timmy Hill | Toyota | 32 | 43 | 3 |
| 40 | 10 | Matt DiBenedetto | Toyota | 24 | 2 | 0 |
Featured image courtesy of NASCAR.com
