NASCAR’s “Drive 4 Diversity” program, which struggled to develop winning drivers in its early years, now has two graduates racing competitively in major touring series, with Kyle Larson in the Sprint Cup Series and Darrell Wallace Jr. in the Camping World Truck Series.
This weekend, in the Nationwide Series at Richmond International Raceway, another participant is set to make his debut in Joe Gibbs Racing’s potent No. 20 Toyota.
The car will be driven by Daniel Suarez, a 22-year-old short-tracker from Monterrey, Mexico, who has enjoyed success this year. He won the first two races on NASCAR’s K&N Pro Series East division, at New Smyrna Speedway in Florida and in the UNOH Battle at the Beach held on a makeshift track on the backstretch of Daytona International Speedway. He also has won two of the first three races of 2014 in the Toyota Series in Mexico.
Despite the importance of his Nationwide debut, Suarez also is scheduled to compete in the K&N Series race at Richmond and in a NASCAR Toyota Series race in his hometown of Monterrey on Sunday.
He said on this week’s NASCAR teleconference that the triple duty, while taxing from a logistical standpoint, shouldn’t distract from his efforts in any of the three series.
“I think it will be a good weekend for us,” he said. “I’m really excited. It’s probably one of the busiest weekends in the year for us. … I’m excited to be in strong teams in every single series.”
Suarez said his deal with Gibbs is only for Friday’s race at Richmond, but he has hopes of future races with the elite NASCAR team.
“For now it’s just Richmond, but I’m really looking forward to doing something good in the future,” he said. “For now I’m just focused to do well in this race. I’m pretty sure that after that race, we are going to have something good for the second half of the year.”
More youth: Another young driver, Austin Theriault from Fort Kent, Maine, has signed a three-race deal to drive the No. 5 Chevrolet for JR Motorsports in three Nationwide races, beginning May 18 at Iowa Speedway and continuing at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 12 and Kentucky Speedway on Sept. 20.
He’ll join Chase Elliott, who drives the No. 9 for JR Motorsports, and Regan Smith, who wheels the No. 7 Chevy.
“Our company is known for putting young talent in cars and giving them a shot on one of NASCAR’s biggest stages, and that is what we are giving Austin with this three-race opportunity,” Kelley Earnhardt Miller, general manager of JR Motorsports, said in a team release. “This keeps our No. 5 car on the track, and it gives Austin the chance to show what he’s got with a lot more eyeballs taking notice.”
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