Races September 18, 2022September 18, 2022 No. 99 Tootsies Chevrolet Fights Handling and Balance Issues All Night Date: September 17th, 2022 Event: Bass Pro Shops Night Race (Round 29 of 36) Series: NASCAR Cup Series Location: Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway (.533-mile oval) Format: 500 laps, broken into three stages (125 laps/125 laps/250 laps) Start/Finish: 29th / 19th (running, completed 494 of 500 laps) Playoff Standing: 11th with 3007 points Notes: Trackhouse Racing driver Daniel Suárez finished 19th in Saturday night’s 500-lap NASCAR Cup Series race at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, the third race of the 2022 playoffs. The points earned in the first three Round of 16 races were enough for Suárez (+7 points) to advance to the next round of the playoffs. Four of the 16 drivers (Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Tyler Reddick and Austin Dillon) were eliminated from playoff contention Saturday. The next round, called Round of 12, begins at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth on Sept. 25 and includes races at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway on Oct. 2 and the Charlotte Roval on Oct. 9 when four more drivers will be eliminated. Suárez begins the Round of 12 in 11th with 3,007 points – six points below the cutoff. It was a battle of survival for Suárez who overcame a car he reported was “bouncing” all race and a spin just after the halfway mark that nearly ended his race. Fellow playoff drivers struggled with their own engine, tire and accident issues that permitted Suárez to only finish the race in order to advance in the playoffs. He avoided trouble and finished the race six laps behind the leaders, but advanced in the playoffs. He started 29th and raced in the top-10 at times as the field employed various pit strategies. He finished 11th at the end of the second stage. Daniel Suárez, driver of the No. 99 Tootsies Chevrolet Camaro for Trackhouse Racing: “It was a long day. It wasn’t pretty, but we did what we needed to do. We thought we were going to be able to make our car better from yesterday to today, but it was not. We have to regroup. Hopefully we can fight some monsters and come back stronger. I think the next round is pretty good for us. Texas (Motor Speedway), we’re going to be strong. A road course is in our wheelhouse. A superspeedway, anything can happen. I’m very thankful for our No. 99 Tootsies Orchid Lounge Chevy team. They never give up. The car wasn’t what we needed, but we’re still on the good side of it.”
