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'Race For The Championship' Star Daniel Suárez Talks Trailblazing In NASCAR
"Race For The Championship" star Daniel Suárez, believes he's one of many international drivers who will dominate NASCAR.
“Race For The Championship” offers NASCAR fans an inside look at the professional and personal lives of some of the sport's top drivers. While each driver has a personal connection to racing, for Daniel Suárez, the show offers him a chance to lead others down the same path he's gone down.
For those unfamiliar, Suárez is the only international racer featured on the show and made history this year when he became the first Mexican-born driver to win a Cup Series race. He originally came to America without speaking a word of English and has since climbed the ranks of NASCAR through sheer talent and determination.
Despite what a remarkable journey he’s had, he insisted to USA Insider digital correspondent Stephanie Gomulka at the show’s red carpet premiere that he believes he’s just the first of many.
“It’s very special to have a different background than most of the other drivers, to come from Mexico to overcome barriers,” Suárez explained. “I’m one of the only drivers who have gone through that … At the end of the day, though, we’re all here in the same position; we’re all here to win races and championships. When we put the helmet on, it makes no difference. It doesn’t matter if you speak English, Chinese, Spanish, whatever that may be, it’s the same thing.”
Although Suárez believes the playing field is leveled once someone reaches the track, he said he hopes seeing his journey will inspire a new generation and get those who said it was impossible to rethink that position.
“Work hard, it’s not an easy journey. I won’t lie to you and say that it’s easy,” he said. “But it’s definitely rewarding ... When I was trying to come here, a lot of people told me that it was impossible to make it to this point, but here I am. I feel like there’s a lot more drivers who are trying to make this career in the United States happen. For example, I’m here and I was able to make it work. So, that’s amazing.”
“Race For The Championship” airs Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on USA Network. You can also catch more NASCAR content on Peacock right now.
