“There just wasn’t really love anymore, but there is no hard feelings at all.” Daniel Suárez’s heartfelt words after his rift with Trackhouse Racing should show you how much he values bonds. His ties with Trackhouse date back to 2021, and Suárez has treasured the past 4 and a half years. So an individual who has known him for decades and helped him into racing is likely to leave a greater imprint on Suarez’s heart, as we got to know recently.

Being a 76-year-old sport, NASCAR has hosted generations of drivers and their parents. Currently, Enrique Baca is a NASCAR Mexico driver who has also taken part in races in the US. For now, however, it is time for him to say goodbye to a previous generation, and Daniel Suárez took part in the farewell.

Daniel Suárez salutes his roots

We all know the struggles that Daniel Suárez faced. When he first moved to the USA in 2011, he faced a big language barrier. The Monterrey, Nuevo León native picked up the lingo by watching movies with subtitles and also cartoons. Then he slowly climbed up the ranks, debuting through NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity program, stunning veterans with his 2016 Xfinity championship, and finally entering the Cup Series. This achievement required immense determination, something which Suárez got from the people who supported him. One of them was the father of Enrique Baca, as Suárez admitted recently. Enrique Baca Hernández passed away recently, and the NASCAR community united in mourning.

Although not much information is available about the deceased individual, the emotional tributes made it clear that he was an asset to the sport. NASCAR Mexico’s Instagram page posted a ‘Rest in Peace’ poster, and left a heartfelt caption (translated from Spanish using Google Translate): “At NASCAR Mexico Series, we join in the grief that overwhelms the Baca family, for the sensitive death of Mr. Enrique Baca Hernández, father of the driver.” Daniel Suárez entered the comments and revealed how deeply connected he was to Mr. Hernández. He wrote, “Many people may not know, but if it weren’t for this guy, I wouldn’t be in the racing world. Thanks for everything, man. See you next time! 🙏🏼 🏎”

Enrique Baca is Daniel Suárez’s childhood friend, and that is how the Trackhouse star knew the Baca family so well. Soon after Suarez won his first NASCAR race in 2016, Baca moved in with him as a roommate. He was named to the Drive for Diversity program in January 2016 and thanked Suarez for helping him out. Baca said about their friendship back then: “Daniel Suárez and I are from the same place in Mexico and raced together in go-karts since we were about ten years old. Suarez has been helping me a lot here, and we also lived together for a while.” Baca managed to clinch one top-20 finish in the NASCAR Xfinity Series during his tenure.

Although Enrique Baca has not engaged in NASCAR races in a long time, he recently did an outing with the sport’s drivers.

Learning with a lot of fun

A few weeks ago, NASCAR went international for the first time in many decades. But the challenges were no less. The Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez racetrack in Mexico City sits at around 7,500 feet above sea level. So Cup Series and Xfinity Series drivers faced high-altitude challenges in a way they were not used to. In order to acclimate to the thinner air and the lower oxygen, Daniel Suárez organized a fun activity for some of his compadres. He battled out a go-kart race with young guns like Connor Zilisch and Jesse Love, along with veterans like Scott Speed and Nick Sanchez. Enrique Baca also engaged in the fun activity, which was a mini-racing madness with playful bumps.

The end goal was to prepare for the NASCAR events in Mexico City. It worked out well for Daniel Suárez at the Chilango 150 race, as he beat Taylor Gray to Victory Lane and fetched an Xfinity victory. Over 90% of the crowd was roaring in cheers for Suárez, which left his rivals stunned. Ross Chastain, Suarez’s teammate, reflected on how Suarez balanced all duties gracefully: “Daniel is already next level on road courses, but coming back here to Mexico, I’ve seen the pride in him. He told us about this race well before it was announced, and I’ve just been excited to be his teammate for a weekend like this.”

Daniel Suárez has made an impact on NASCAR, and that is only because of the amazing people who made an impact on him. Enrique Baca’s father was one of them, and we wish the Baca family peace at this difficult time.