When Daniel Suarez climbed out of his race car and was declared the winner of the rain-shortened Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday night, one of the first things he did was lift his baseball cap above his head, look to the heavens, and break into heavy tears to mix with the heavy rain.

It wasn’t just any ball cap that Suarez lifted, though. It didn’t carry the logo of any of his sponsors, nor did it have the logo of his car, No. 7.

Rather, Suarez donned a No. 8 cap, symbolic of the late Kyle Busch’s car number, pointed to the sky, and gave thanks to his late friend and mentor.

Suarez wasn’t just looking at the rain that gave him the third win of his Cup career and brought the race to an early conclusion, 27 laps short of the scheduled 600-mile, 400-lap event at the 1.5-mile Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Rather, the native of Mexico looked up, raised his hand, and said, “This one’s for you, Kyle.”

It was one of the most emotional race wins NASCAR had seen since Dale Earnhardt Jr. won his first Cup race after the tragic death of his father, Dale Sr., in the February 2001 Daytona 500. Dale Jr. returned to Daytona International Speedway, the same place that claimed his father’s life, five months later, for the annual Coca-Cola 400 and won in his father’s memory.

“It’s been a very tough week,” Suarez said. “Kyle was a special man. I did this one for Kyle, Samantha, for Brexton, and Lennix, for his family. It was very special. Every win is special, but this one definitely is special because it’s for Kyle… this one is for him.”

“If it wasn’t for Kyle, I never would have won an Xfinity championship, and I wouldn’t have had my shot at the Cup Series. To win this race for him is unbelievable.”

Suarez Owes Much of His Career to Busch’s Tutelage

What made Sunday’s finish so emotional and joyous was that Suarez wouldn’t have become the driver he is today, or might even have had to return to his native country as a failure, if it hadn’t been for Busch.

The younger Busch brother didn’t have to, but he became one of the biggest influences and mentors in Suarez’s life from the moment he arrived in the U.S. to join Joe Gibbs Racing from his native Mexico, knowing only a few words of English at the time. Even with the language barrier, Busch and Suarez were able to use the universal language of racing to turn Suarez into a successful racer.

When Busch was sidelined with severe foot and leg injuries from a serious crash in the 2015 Nationwide Series season opener and missed 11 Cup races before being cleared to return, he still became a key mentor to Suarez while recovering and rehabbing from his injuries. Busch later went on to win the first of his two Cup championships that season, with the second coming in 2019.

Although Suarez initially felt he was being a bother to Busch because of his serious and intense rehab regimen, Busch assured Suarez that he wasn’t being a bother at all. The younger Busch brother told Suarez to call, text, or email him at any time, day or night.

That proved to be key to Suarez finding success even while Busch was spending several months rehabbing and strengthening himself. With Busch’s help, particularly his guidance about tracks Suarez had never raced on before, Suarez finished fifth in the Xfinity Series that season and then returned in 2016 to win the Xfinity championship, which led to a promotion from JGR to the NASCAR Cup Series in 2017.

Busch Helped Suarez With his Racing, and Suarez Helped Busch With His Language

Of note from that 2016 Xfinity season, Suarez publicly thanked Busch during the annual post-season awards banquet, which prompted Busch to remark with a smile, “I helped Daniel with his racing, and he helped me with my Spanish.”

Suarez was Busch’s teammate at JGR from 2014 through 2018 before Suarez’s contract was not renewed, and he moved to Stewart-Haas Racing. Suarez also made 26 starts on the side for Busch’s former Truck Series team (KB Motorsports), winning once and adding 10 more top-five finishes and six more top-10 showings.

“(Kyle) didn’t have to help me,” Suarez said. “He didn’t have to help this Mexican kid that can barely speak English. He was already a legend of the sport, and he took the time every single week to help me. That, for me, spoke very, very highly of not who he is as a driver, but who he is as a person. Most people didn’t know that side of him. I got to know that side of him.

Those are the kinds of things I want to remember about him. Honestly, because of those things, he made me want to be like him, wanting to help others, want to go give a hand to those upcoming drivers that need a hand. He was a role model.”

Because of Busch’s tutelage, particularly during their time together at JGR, and even afterward when Suarez moved to SHR, Gaunt Brothers Racing, Trackhouse Racing, and then this year to Spire Motorsports, Suarez remains a Cup driver. And even when Suarez moved to those other teams, Busch was always just a call or text away if Suarez had any questions or needed advice.

“At one point, I thought my career was going to be over,” Suarez said. “But I never stopped believing in myself. I never stopped believing in the person and the driver that I can be (with much of the thanks due to Busch).”

In fact, Busch played a big part in Suarez signing with Spire this season after his contract was not renewed by Trackhouse Racing, as Spire co-owner Jeff Dickerson used to be Kyle’s manager and spotter. Busch also competed for Spire in four Truck Series races this season, winning two, including the final race of his career on Friday, May 15, at Dover Motor Speedway, less than a week before he tragically passed away.

When NASCAR officially called Sunday’s race and his team surrounded him on pit road, Suarez broke into tears that mixed with the rain after he was declared the winner of what is traditionally the longest race of the NASCAR Cup Series season.

If Busch was riding with anyone, it had to be with Suarez. Prior to the final restart of the race with 31 laps to go, Suarez and crew chief Ryan Sparks gambled by taking only two tires while most of the drivers around him went with four.

Shortly after the green flag dropped, Suarez quickly shot out to a big lead, almost as if Busch was pushing him from behind. From there, it was the No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet’s race to lose, and that’s not what happened.

One other thing that made Suarez’s win so special was that it marked the first time his family, including his mother, father, and other relatives from Mexico, saw him win a Cup race in person. His previous wins came at Sonoma in 2022 and Atlanta in 2024.

“It really means a lot to me,” Suarez said. “I’ve been saying for years that this is my favorite race of the year because I get to have my family here.”

The win pushed Suarez up to 10th in the Cup standings heading into the next race at Nashville on Sunday, May 31.