Daniel Suarez doesn't hold back on Trackhouse's 'average' Darlington showing amid playoff tension

Daniel Suarez appeared to have delivered a wake-up call to his team, Trackhouse Racing. The #99 Chevrolet driver had an 'average' Darlington performance, jeopardizing his playoff odds, following which, he expressed concerns about strategies not working out.

The Darlington Raceway witnessed Denny Hamlin post a second consecutive win, totaling his Cup Series win count to 56. William Byron led the most laps of the race and his career, at 243, but couldn't maintain his dominance until the checkered flag dropped.

Suarez kicked off the 297-lapper from the rear of the field in 30th place after pushing hard and making contact with the wall during the qualifying. He showed signs of a promising result at the 'Too Tough To Tame' track. The Mexican jumped to 24th place at the end of Stage 1 but stooped to 31st in the second stage.

Nonetheless, the two-time Cup Series race winner surged to the lead twice, on Lap 247 and 249. However, he couldn't take charge of the pack for 1.366 miles, relinquishing his lead and the odds of punching a playoff ticket.

Though Daniel Suarez rose to a 15th-place finish after the back-of-the-pack start, he wasn't pleased with Trackhouse's lackluster display, where strategies didn't go as planned a 'couple of times.'

"The No. 99 Quaker State Chevy was still tight. The strategy just didn’t go our way a couple of times. We were just average.. we weren’t great. We’ll go back to work and get ready for Bristol next weekend," Daniel Suarez said via Speedway Digest.

Suarez safeguarded his spot in the 2024 playoffs by denying Ryan Blaney the win at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

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Where does Daniel Suarez stand among his Trackhouse teammates

Trackhouse Racing expanded to a three-car team this season, bringing aboard Shane van Gisbergen as the driver of the #88 Chevrolet.

While the New Zealander had a glamorous NASCAR entry, courtesy of his debut Cup win at the inaugural Chicago Street Race in 2023, he has yet to impress with his performance this season. He is the last-ranked Trackhouse driver at P33.

Ross Chastain caught plenty of limelight this season for his aggressive driving. The #1 Chevy driver ran into Chase Elliott on the first lap of the COTA Cup Series race and upset the Hendrick Motorsports rival again in the Darlington Xfinity race by not leaving much room to pass.

Still, Chastain is the best-performing teammate with four top-10s and a solitary top-5 from eight race weekends.

Meanwhile, with one top-5 and top-10 earned through a runner-up effort at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Daniel Suarez is ranked 24th, below Chastain's 12th but above SVG's 33rd.

Chastain is above the provisional playoff divider, whereas his teammates are lingering below.