Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-80):
● Daniel Suárez started Stage 1 from the 20th position and ended the stage ninth to earn two stage points.
● Suárez worked his way up to 13th on lap 20 before taking over the lead for 12 laps while green-flag pit stops cycled through.
● The Mexico native relinquished the lead on lap 61 for a green-flag stop and received two right-side tires, fuel and adjustments to help with his tight-handling condition.
● Suárez made a pit stop during the Stage 1 break for fuel and four tires and began Stage 2 in the 10th position.
Stage 2 Recap (Laps 81-160):
● The No. 41 driver started Stage 2 in 10th and completed it in 14th.
● On lap 125, he made a scheduled green-flag pit stop from 11th for fuel, four tires and adjustments to help with his front grip.
● The event stayed green until the end of the stage, and the Haas Automation driver completed it in 14th.
● He pitted during the stage break for fuel and four tires and began the final stage in 17th.
Final Stage Recap (Laps 161-276):
● The Mexico native began the final stage in 17th and concluded it in 17th.
● On lap 222, Suárez once again made a scheduled green-flag pit stop for fuel, four tires and adjustments from the 13th position.
● After pit stops cycled through he was in the 19th position and worked his way up to 17th, where he ultimately ended the event.
Notes:
● Suárez finished ninth in Stage 1 to earn two bonus points.
● Suárez led once for 12 laps – his first laps led at Las Vegas.
● Joey Logano won the Las Vegas 400 to score his 22nd career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series victory, his first of the season and his first at Las Vegas. His margin of victory over second-place Brad Keselowski was .236 of a second.
● There were two caution periods for a total of 12 laps.
● Only 18 of the 38 drivers in the Las Vegas 400 finished on the lead lap.
● Logano leaves Las Vegas as the championship leader with a six-point advantage over second-place Denny Hamlin.
Daniel Suárez, Driver of the No. 41 Haas Automation Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:
“We had a good Haas Automation Ford Mustang on the long runs, but we didn’t have the short-run speed today. I felt like we had a top-10 car, but once we lost a little track position it was hard to get back up there. Overall though, from Friday’s practice to Saturday’s practice we made improvements on the car, so our communication is good and the guys are able to adjust on the car to help me. We’ll move on to Phoenix next week, which is one of my best tracks.”
Next Up:
The next event on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the TicketGuardian 500k on Sunday, March 10 at ISM Raceway near Phoenix. The race starts at 3:30 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FOX beginning with its prerace show at 3 p.m.
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