Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-80):
● Daniel Suárez started the stage in 28th and ended it 19th.
● After starting 28th, Suárez worked his way up to 19th by lap 10 just before the race was red flagged due to weather.
● Once the red flag was lifted and drivers returned to their cars, Suárez pitted on lap 14 for four tires and fuel. He restarted 19th on lap 16.
● Suárez entered the top-10 on lap 50 and continued to gain track position before taking over the lead on lap 75 as the field began green-flag pit stops.
● Suárez pitted on lap 76 for fuel only and returned to the track in 16th.
● The Mexico native reported he had a tire issue on lap 78, but a caution came out on lap 79 allowing him to stay on track before pitting for four tires and fuel under yellow.
● The Ruckus driver completed Stage 1 in the 19th spot.
Stage 2 Recap (Laps 81-160):
● The No. 41 driver started Stage 2 in 19th and completed it in 27th.
● The third caution of the race occurred on lap 104 with Suárez running in 15th. He told the team his Ruckus Mustang was too free after the first 15 laps in the run, and he pitted for four tires, fuel and adjustments under the caution.
● Suárez restarted 17th on lap 108 and jumped to the 12th position on the first lap back under green.
● On lap 120 after falling back to 15th, Suárez said the handling of his Ford had not improved.
● Suárez pitted under green on lap 137 for four tires and fuel after contact with the No. 11 caused a flat right-rear tire. He returned to the track in 30th, two laps down.
● Suárez ended Stage 2 in 27th, two laps down.
Final Stage Recap (Laps 161-267):
● The Ruckus driver began the final stage in 25th and concluded it in 24th.
● Suárez did not pit before the start of the final stage and took the wave-around to get a lap back. He lined up 25th for the lap-166 restart, one lap down.
● Under caution on lap 174, the Ruckus driver pitted for four tires, fuel and adjustments to help tighten up his Ford Mustang.
● Suárez restarted 25th and moved up to 23rd before the final round of green-flag stops began on lap 218.
● The driver of the No. 41 pitted for his final scheduled stop under green on lap 226 for four tires and fuel. He rejoined the field in 25th, two laps down after being lapped while on pit road.
● Suárez returned to the track in the 25th position and was able to finish the race in 24th.
Notes:
● Suárez led one lap, the first of his career at Chicagoland.
● Alex Bowman won the Camping World 400 to score his first career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series victory. His margin of victory over second-place Kyle Larson was .546 of a second.
● There were five caution periods for a total of 25 laps.
● Only 17 of the 38 drivers in the Camping World 400 finished on the lead lap.
● Joey Logano remains the championship leader after Chicagoland with an 18-point advantage over second-place Kyle Busch.
Daniel Suárez, Driver of the No. 41 Ruckus Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:
“Our Ruckus Ford was too free all day, and we had a hard time making the right adjustments to get the handling to where we needed it. It was hard to get any laps back with the green-flag pit stops, but the No. 41 guys worked hard all day, and we’ll keep learning and getting better.”
Next Up:
The next event on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Coke Zero Sugar 400 on Saturday, July 6 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. The race starts at 7:30 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by NBC and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
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