The Dale Jr. Download - Daniel Suárez: Put Me Against The Wall And I Come Swinging

Episode Date: June 25, 2025

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. After one of the most meaningful wins of his career, Dale Jr. and Daniel Suarez sit down to discuss Daniel’s Mexico race weekend experience. He shares what it was like to have 90% of the fans in the stands cheering for him, and how he stayed focused during the weekend. He also dives into his journey to U.S. citizenship and what it was like growing up racing in Mexico. He opens up on the challenges he faced moving to the United States and trying to race without knowing the language. Daniel also provides an update on what his racing endeavors will be beyond the 2025 season and shares how the biggest pressure he has faced in his career has been off the race track. It’s an honest, open, and authentic conversation that you won’t want to miss.  Dirty Mo Media is launching a new e-commerce merch line! They’ve got some awesome Dale Jr. Download merch on the site. Visit shop.dirtymomedia.com to check out all the new stuff.And for more content check out our YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/@DirtyMoMediaFanDuel disclaimer: Must be 21+ and present in select states (for Kansas, in affiliation with Kansas Star Casino) or 18+ and present in D.C. First online real money wager only. $5 first deposit required. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable bonus bets which expire 7 days after receipt. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG. Call 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat in Connecticut, or visit mdgamblinghelp.org in Maryland. Hope is here. Visit GamblingHelpLineMA.org or call [phone] for 24/7 support in Massachusetts, or call 1-877-8HOPE-NY or text HOPENY in New York. Check out Dirty Mo Media on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@DirtyMoMedia  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

You know, a lot of people talk about pressure, you know, the playoffs and winning at race and contract here. 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 oversell people. Like, you put me against the wall and I'm going to come out you're swinging. The following is a production of Dirty Mo Media. 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. I hadn't talked to Daniel in a while since the win, so let's get after it. All right, everybody. So Daniel's here.

And 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 about, 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 drive a perruder 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? Well, first of all, Dale, thank you so much for having me. It was, I've been wanting to be on your show for a little while. And then when, when, when I got the opportunity to race for you in Mexico, I told, man, we have to win this race. And then this is going to be the perfect excuse to do it.

So here we are. Listen, man, in Mexico, just like most countries out there, when you are, when you are, When you are, let's say, 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 gokers in Rothkurs. That was the only option. So when you're a young kid and you raise gokers in Rodkurs, you are thinking Formula One, you are thinking in the car, you're thinking all the different things. series because ovals, you know, we don't have ovals for kids, really, until later on. So once you start growing and you just don't 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 oval race I didn't do my first Oval race until I was maybe like 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. 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 Kylan. And we're talking about the differences and how experience he is. for his age. And I was telling him, as I mean, there is no way that there is a kid in South America that is even close to that level of experience in ovals as killing. And it's not because they don't want, it's because they don't have their 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, you know, and you have to all be the ones you get to the NASCAR, Mexico level. you are aiming, you know, if you are young and you have the ability, obviously, you are aiming

to the United States. That's why this race in Mexico City, it was such a big deal, not just for us as an industry, but also 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 what they call it the big boys. Yeah. I, you know, I think that, uh, The path that you took is probably one of the more challenging ones. And so that's why I think, you know, your success and, you know, the things you've accomplished in the Xfinity series and now the Cup series are remarkable to be because of that. You know, 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 time.

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 transfer it 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. Yeah, I totally, totally agree, Dale. I think that, you know, in my opinion,

a very good driver in Rott Cours is going to be able to change cars and series between in Rott Curs and eventually find success. And in all those, it's just a complete different worked. I mean, we have seen it, in my opinion, Juan Pablo 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, in NASCAR. I mean, he had it difficult. He had a difficult. I mean, he never won an album. It's difficult. It's just very, very difficult because 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 know, you're always playing behind. And that's something that is just difficult, you know. And I just wish more people worldwide understood. what it takes to racing ovals because no many people has this perspective, but some people have 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 going to be honest, 15 years ago, that was the case with me. You know, when I was 17 years old that I was about to try ovals, and I'm like, man, this should be easy. If I can drive roadcours, this is going to be easy. Oh, man. Oh, man. So it's a complete even animal. And it has taken me, you know, 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 used to this and 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. So, you know, we did go to Mexico City and we won the Xfinity race there and we saw a really exciting cup race there.

I really enjoyed the hell out of Mexico City, man. It has got a lot of energy and the town and just driving back and forth from the track of 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, 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. 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.

Montreal, 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 I was making a comparison with the United States, it's almost like New York being Mexico City and then... you know, Atlanta being a Montreal in Mexico, or Charlotte, North Carolina being Montreal and Mexico, which is a good size, but it's not near as busy as, as Mexico City. So, you know, and when I grew up, really, we had an entire city,

we only had two race tracks, two go-car trucks, and that was it. And at one point, actually, one got destroyed, so we only had one. So, racing is definitely a thing in South America. But like I said, you know, when you start racing, you mainly, you only have the road course path. So it's just a little bit different. But I'm so happy that you and the entire industry had to have the experience in Mexico. Because a lot of people don't know, right? many people in industry, it was the first time living 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, you know, because they're extremely passionate. I mean, you saw that after winning an exfini race. It's pretty, it was pretty special for me. Definitely one of the most special weekends of my career. 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 bringing all of them into your home. You want all of us to go and have a great experience. So 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 had 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 you know thought that you probably were experiencing um talk me through that I, you know, it all worked out really well. Of course, you'd have loved one on Sunday, but you did get to treat everybody that was there on Saturday with a victory, which was insane to be a part of. But talk about coming, you know, when even go as, 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?

Yeah, there definitely was, uh, It was very personal for me because, you know, when I left my country in the middle of 2011, most people in Mexico, they were telling me that that really wasn't an option for a Mexican driver in the U.S. And it was going to be very difficult and all the different things. Like 80% of the comments were like, man, don't go. Just stay here in Alaska, Mexico. And fast forward later, you know, 10 years later, 12 years later, you know, I was able to, 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 circle, you know,

in a very, very, very nice chapter. And then, obviously, you know, you know how long this kind of deals, conversations take. I have known of these conversations been in the works for years, and I'm talking three years at least. And it just, he was making progress, and then it stole a little bit,

making progress and then stole a little bit. And it just, I was almost like in the bag, just like a cheerleader, hey, keep going, you know. 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, from Jim, or Alis and Caros Lim and Chad Siegler 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. 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 U.S. that they made me feel like home.

Without being said, it's not where I was born. It's not what 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 park. 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 buildup into the event that by the time that I got to Friday to have actually raised activities, I only felt relief that I was actually going to drive because there was so much built up for six months. So, yeah, it was definitely a weekend that I will never forget. Talk about the Xfinity race when 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 a 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, you know, the, feeling, obviously, you know, the emotion starts when you cross the finish line,

but getting out in front of all those people there, 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 be able to get out of that car, stand on that roof, the relief that you were able to deliver something for them. Yeah.

And by the way, congratulations on your new win resume as a cruise. Yeah. That's pretty cool. Listen, Dale, I've been raising, maybe you have experienced this. I don't know. You're going to 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 rhyming.

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 the focus. in what it matter and let all the knowledge on the side because it was a distraction. And the funny thing is that Carlos Lim and Jim Morales, before the weekend, they told me, Daniel, I know that you have racing many places and you've been, you know,

fighting for a championship in Miami and you have had all these high pressure moments, but you're about to experience something that is next level. When they mention that to me, when they mention 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, you know, be able to refocus my mind in 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. Like I have never felt so much energy and so much noise, almost like the fans were right next to me in the car. It was unbelievable.

Yeah, we were, I was standing in the, in the TV booth for the cup race on that Saturday, watching from that point of view by myself. And when you drove into the stadium section with the leave for the first time, it is exactly like the crowd reacting to 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 green flag, you come through that corner and you're leading the race.

There, you know, it was, it was wild. I could, I was, I was, my booth was probably about 20 feet 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 rival 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 efforts you put into that weekend I know you had a whole lot of things going on the Xfinity series was just as 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

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 GRM at the head table with you for this experience of being in Mexico City and so that was so so neat for us to 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 competitive and your your personality 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. Thank you so much, Dale. Thank you 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 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 raise your cars very often. So to be able to at least until now, do one and have already a bunny in there that says then, Suarez, Mexico City, number nine car, Quaker State is very special. So thank you for that. Yeah, for sure. Hey, I'm T.J. 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. 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 have that issues. But I heard you haven't been complaining lately.

No, man. I've actually had great service at the track, especially this weekend being in Pocono, those mountains, if he service sometimes. 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. Yeah, I mean, I like to change things up myself. I would do this, but I just don't like the hassle, you know? 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. Consumer Seller has been awesome, man. And, you know, not only being connected with the RFK and the six 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 it out, I can pick it out like nothing. And it's awesome, man. Really, really, really happy I made the switch.

Awesome. Could you get me a deal or something? Well, good news for you, Andrew. You're in luck. The switch was made very simple for me. It's 100% U.S.-based customer service. It took maybe less than 20 minutes, man. And I went for the two for 60 plan.

Dang, well, that sounds pretty good. Can you hook me up or something with a deal? Of course I can. You can switch to consumer cellular right now and get $25 off with code DJD 25. That's DJD25 for $25 for $25 when you switch to consumer cellular. Go to consumer cellular.com slash DJD and use promo code DJD 25 and tune in on Tuesdays to hear more from me and my thoughts on the Dirty Air Show. well man um i want to talk to you about uh you know you became a citizen of the u s what's that process like um why was that important to you um you know take walk me through that no a lot of

you know i'll never i'll never get to experience what that might have been like and how proud of the moment that may have been 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 going to get to that point. Yeah. You know, I remember when I came to the U.S. at first in 2011, I was here with my tourist visa.

So with your tourist visa, you're not supposed to live here. So I was actually living here for a little while and then coming back, leaving 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 second world visa. And eventually 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 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 because, you know, Mexico, it would be forever, you know, in my heart because it's a place where I was born, where I was raised. Obviously, Spanish is my native, my native language, my family and everyone is still down there. without being said my adult life, my home is in the United States. You know, 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. Yeah, 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. One day, you know, we decided 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 I felt like the United States is my adult home. So 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. Some people, like my kids one day, they're not going to have to do it. They're going to be pretty much automatic. So it was a great experience to understand how the system works. And yeah, it was something that I really, really enjoyed. Let's talk about your Cup career. I remember, you know, to get there, you came through the Xfinity series, races with Joe Gibbs, won a championship.

I remember one of the very first races that I worked on a booth as a broadcaster was at Michigan. Oh, yeah. I was like, this guy's for real. He just passed Kyle Busch. Nobody beats Cobbush 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 an oval experience, and you went out there and you not only made the playoffs 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 wild to me.

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're lucky if you get 20 years. You're literally halfway through, you know, what people would consider a very, you know, a 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 but now you're in your fourth or fifth year with track house where you've had a home for a while and and and seemed to have settled in. So, so, you know, where are you at?

Yeah, you know, when I went to a national series in 2015, you know, I started and I started working and then, you know, my second year, you know,

in the Xfinery series, because back then, the Xfinery 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 extremely 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 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 great. And then in COP, obviously, it's a completely different level.

Because, you know, COP, Xfinity, when you have a rough day, you can still run top five, top ten sometimes. If you are good enough. In COP, when you have a bad day, you're running 25th, 30th. So the competition is just a completely different level. You know, the best drivers are there, best cruise shifts, best peak crews, best engineers, best of everything, car shifts, everything the best is there. So I start to realize that you couldn't rely on talent only.

You need to rely on everything else to. You know, 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 several organizations. And sometimes you know how this is, is that sometimes it's about timing, right? And I felt like for some reason my timing was off for years. You know, my first race ever, the first time I was in a car, in a cop car, wasn't the Daytona 500 in 2017.

team. 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 for my fire hose. And, and I just wasn't having enough. And eventually, you know, as you know, I started jumping from team to team. And, and, uh, and it was a stroll. Um, I feel like, I feel like I was getting better as a driver. but then it was a lot of instability, you know. In the Stuart House, I felt like we had a great year going, but unfortunately, in the middle part of the year,

you know, 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 Coaster was coming in. So it was just a difficult situation to be. All the winter I found Trachhouse, and we started this from a scratch. Barry Moss, and they believe in me.

At that point, I already had experienced. 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 research shooters racing, we wouldn't have built dryhouse the way that we did. So they were a crucial part of the puzzle. And, yeah, it's been amazing.

You know, we have grown a lot, win some races. always we always want more. There is things that we have to continue to work on. Especially in the last year or so, you know, I felt like we have lost a little track. And then we hit a humdrum, but then we're too inconsistent. 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, you know, I'm in my prime because I believe that everything that I can do on the racetrack and off the racetrack is just a very, very good combination of things. And we've been able to use that, to be able to take direction with the team. With AviS8, it's tough because right now the competition is difficult. You know, everyone is so close and you are a little bit off and you are 15 to 20th.

You know, 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. Whether you've got one shelf or a whole wall dedicated to NASCAR diecast, there's always room for more. And nobody brings the excitement to the track and to your collection like Lionel Racing, the official diecast of NASCAR. From the legendary rides like the number three Goodrich car to the paint schemes of today's hottest stars like Kyle Larson and Ross Chastain,

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lionelracing.com. Just use the promo code DJD25. That's promo code DJD.25 at LionelRacing.com. 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, that, was going to be your experience for the year listen nothing you know they did a they did as an admirable of the 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 take take me take me I was watching you throughout that season man and

I was wondering how you were going to handle that because there were going to some tough, tough Sundays and some hard, hard sleepless nights. Yeah, Del, you know, for me, that was, that was really, you know, I was coming from racing for Gibbs for a couple of years. And then that was a straw. That was a struggle in different directions. And then Stuart has, I say, man, we're finally heading 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, the trackhouse 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 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 plan 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 a, 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 25. or than 22nd, especially with those cars back then, because we didn't have these cars that are all pretty equal. 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 going to give everything I got regardless if I can only fight for 25th

because 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 if we run 26 or 28, that's not going to keep me sharp for my next year. So I worked 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. we're finished the cycle.

We're going to have a competition meetings on Monday after the last race of the season. I promise to you, I pushed the team. The team didn't even have competition meetings at first. I told him, we're 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

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. Yeah.

I'll say this, man. I wasn't sure you were going to survive it. 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 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 going to 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 track house. and got you into a program 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-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? Yeah, they'll definitely, there is... A lot of things have happened in the last 10 months or so.

I love dry house. This is my home. And I'm forever thankful for everything that adjusting and a dry house and Tynerys at the time. And a lot of people have done to build this amazing place. Lately, it's been a little bit of a straw, not just on the track, but also of the truck. in a few things and right now we are we're in a most win situation we're in a

most win situation the good thing about that is that we have we have good racetracks for us you know alana 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. You know, you have a winning car five times and you win two races. You know, and sometimes things go your way and 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 very focused on the next task that right now is a lot. 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 on. 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, the 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 your future looks like 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 couple months few months we see what happens there is still a lot of things on the air right now there is just something 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 trackhouse. And I love this team. And this team for me is being my best home in the Cup series. And I want to have more. 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 we see what happens. I mean, right now, honestly, everything is an option. But 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 work out.

They always do. I'm working very, very hard. The team is doing their job. the 99 team and what an amazing group I have. You know, my cruise chief, mechanics, my PICU, I have an amazing group. I have an amazing group. And we see what happens. But that is still a lot of things on the air.

And I hope that everything works out in a way that everyone is happy. 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 try to keep that same attitude that things will find a way to sort themselves out in a place where I'll be happy, right? 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. Hey, T.J., you know that I got my own Chevy dealership down in Tallahassee, Florida. We're part of the Hendrick Automotive Group. Yes, I have heard of Darren Hart Jr. Chevrolet. I bet you'd be surprised on what type of Chevrolet vehicles we specialize in. If I had a guess, I'm going to say it would probably be Chevy trucks. Well, we definitely sell plenty of those, but actually we're really big in commercial vehicles.

So we actually sell a lot of crane trucks, or the number one seller, actually, in crane trucks. Okay, I definitely did not see that coming. Yeah, pretty neat, huh? So for any of our listeners shopping for commercial vehicles, here are some things you need to know about us at Dellenhart 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 Dale Jr. Chevy.com and click commercial to explore the wide range of available commercial vehicles. Our team at Dellenhart Jr. Chevrolet will give you a world-class experience. Chevrolet, together, let's drive. the end-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 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 shit. 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 might really want to, because it's a million bucks. Exactly. How are you thinking about this? I completely agree with everything that you say, Dale,

because at first when they came with this program, I was like, we deal with it whenever we get there. And I promised 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 who's men that I love to, I love to live one day at the time and I love to be present. You know, life is too short

not to be enjoying the present moment right now. And when they told me, yeah, man, that thing is going to start in June. And we deal in June. So now we're in June and I think is going to be very exciting. You know, my first battle is going to be actually in Atlanta

with my friend Boba Wallace. So if I cannot beat him, him, I may put him on the wall. But, you know, it's going to be one of those things, Dale, where you're not going to be paying attention to who you're racing against the entire race until the last 30 laps. The last 30 laps, you're going to see, where is this guy to make sure I stay ahead of this guy?

Yeah. But, yeah, I think it's going to be a lot of fun. And I give a lot of credit to everyone involved to making it happen. and I think it's going to be fun to watch. 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 bracket each week. So for fans that kind of want to have all of that going on,

you can watch our T&T 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, Listen, I think we all understand. Nobody's fooling anybody here. I think we all know that each driver, specifically you, have a lot of things going on. Like, you know, you got to be thinking when.

You've got to be thinking playoffs. You've 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 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 very excited about it. I think it's a neat little layer, and I'm hopeful. I'm glad for your response. I'm glad for Chase's response about it. He said that he is in a, him and Noah, Gregson 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 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 that challenge or experience the highs and the lows from what 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 the 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. 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 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 Selyo'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 a different journey. And that's the beautiful thing about it. That 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 languages, learning everything, living my parents, living 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, you know, when I was 19, calling my mom, you know, with no money,

struggling just to stay afloat. Crying, because I felt lonely. I felt that I didn't know if I was doing the right thing, and my mom was crying on 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 I remember, you know, I have a special relationship with Joy Logano, with Chase Elliott,

with Blaney, with Boba Wallace, with Corolla Joy, with some of these guys, Because some of these guys that I just mentioned and a few more, I have known them since I couldn't even communicate with them. And for me, that's special, right? Because they have, they made the Daniel that was just lonely and just trying to figure it out in a new world. And they know the day 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.

So, and that for me is very special. You know, that's why I have a good bond with some of these drivers. And then people in 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, this guy, to me, it's 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 was a true friend. He was a true friend, just giving me support, staying to stay positive, to keep pushing. This is when I work out. 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 my early years. So we met also in that era when I was just lonely, just trying to figure it out.

So many great people, you know. For me, obviously, once I started making it into a national series to be able 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 I remember my first year racing in Cup when Jimmy Johnson was invited me to ride bicycle with all you guys.

Like I felt super special, you know? And for me, those are very special moments because it's an American dream. You know, I keep coming from Mexico with nothing. All the Southern, a handful of years later, is hanging out with the heroes that I thought they were superheroes watching only on TV.

So it's, it's been an amazing journey, man. I'm very blessed. Man, 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, you know, how much effort you put behind that. You knew that those things, as a spokesman, as a race car driver, you had to excel at learning that language in a unique way.

And you had to, you can speak to it better than I can. But I just remember 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 and tell 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 ability to communicate was going to be how you made a living.

Talk about that. 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're 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 moments for me. You know, a lot of people talk about pressure, you know, the playoffs and winning

a race and contract here. I'm like, guys, that's nothing. Like in comparison to what I had to go through, that's nothing. You know, like, I have to have big pressure moments in my earlier in my career that like, I'm comfortable with pressure. I'm actually, I believe that I always sell people, like,

you put me against the wall and I'm going to come and you're swinging. I feel comfortable in that situation. And I have come to realize, Dale, 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 possible be, you know, coming from Mexico and doing all these different things. I have come to realize that 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 started to realize that I was being an example, not just to future racing drivers, but to people coming to the country. And I started 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, all of us are difficult. So, you know, for me, that 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 it. 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, put the, the whole execution plan together and trying to, trying to execute it in the best possible way. and before you know it, you're going to be two quarters into the mountain. So, you know, for me, I have taken that very personal

and trying to help other people coming from different countries to be successful. Yeah. Because not because you're the first, not because nobody has done it before, it means that it's not doable. It just means that it's going to be difficult. Yeah. But it doesn't mean that it's not doable.

Damn, dude. That's powerful, man. I love that, breaking the mountain down. I don't know a better way we can go in this thing 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 were 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 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, 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 lot of fun to watch. And it is inspiring. I've got, I, 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 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 is awesome.

And I hope you keep telling it because you do inspire people. and I know you know that but I want more people, all the people that are listening to the 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. Thank you so much. They all really, really means a lot your kind of awards and hopefully we can do it again soon. Absolutely, buddy.

Go out there and win some races, go get that championship, man. Have some fun. Thank you so much, my friend. I appreciate you. See you soon. I appreciate you. You bet.

See you this weekend. Hey, it's Dale Jr. Did you know that we've got brand new merch from our Star Stripes and Bears Collection available now? We've got tanks, teas, beach towels, and more just in time for summer. Check it all out at shop.dirtymomedia.com. All right, so that's the conversation with Daniel Sores. So I've kind of been friendly with Daniel for a couple years,

all the years we raced against each other. And I, you know, raced against him in the Xfinity series as an owner and lost a 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 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 have that. I would be so anxious, so worried that everything was 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 new or more appreciation for the path that he took 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 rooted he's committed he is in a difficult situation in 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 try to achieve his dream and his goals because he's a good good guy man so thankful for him uh thanks thankful that we got him on the show and we've 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 um but it's a pretty pretty fun conversation the tear down uh was live on youtube um this past Sunday and Twitter as well. Jeff Gluck and Jordan Biaki broke down everything from the Pocono race and had some great kind words about the Prime broadcast. Thank you, Jeff and Jordan. Every Sunday they break down the race right after it happens. It's great listen on the tear down, so go check it out. Danny 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 Your Heart with my wife, Amy. We had also our Tuesday episode of Dirty Air, and I had Connor Zilich 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 bring it home. We'll see you all tomorrow for Bless Your Heart. Check out Dirtymo Media on Instagram, Facebook, X, and TikTok.