Editor’s Note: Today’s Trackhouse Racing preview continues NASCAR.com’s countdown of team previews for the 2024 Cup Series season.
TRACKHOUSE RACING
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Engine: ECR Engines
Driver-crew-chief pairings: Ross Chastain-Phil Surgen (No. 1), Daniel Suárez-Matt Swiderski (No. 99)
Team outlook: In only three years of full-time competition, Trackhouse Racing has established itself as one of the most talented – and exciting – teams in the NASCAR Cup Series. Ross Chastain and Daniel Suárez are both race winners, with the former being a bona fide championship contender. The organization is energized to welcome New Zealand’s Shane van Gisbergen to the fold, where the highly-touted three-time Australian Super Cars champion brings raised expectations. Team owner Justin Marks takes great pride in the innovative ways this team operates in NASCAR’s big leagues, and after three full-time seasons of competition, high hopes are now high standards of expectation.
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ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 CHEVROLET
Experience: Five full-time seasons in the NASCAR Cup Series
2023 stats: Ninth in final standings; 2 wins, 10 top fives, 14 top 10s
2024 championship odds: 14-1
Outlook: Now with a solid two years of championship-caliber performance under his belt, Chastain has proven himself to be a legitimate part of the trophy conversation. Trackhouse Racing has answered every call as a high-profile contender, and Chastain has matched that with his performance on track in both years with the company. In so many ways, this partnership is that “great” opportunity for both the team and the driver. Expect it to continue playing out positively. Chastain has shown he can win races and maintain a new disciplined approach, which he worked on last year. Now, it will be a matter of elevating the hard work into that first championship trophy for the team and driver. It would surprise no one if Chastain and Marks were standing under falling confetti on the Phoenix Raceway championship stage this November.
MORE: Swiderski to Trackhouse, Mack to Kaulig in crew-chief swap
DANIEL SUÁREZ, NO. 99 CHEVROLET
Experience: Seven full-time seasons in the NASCAR Cup Series
2023 stats: 19th in final standings; 0 wins, 3 top fives, 10 top 10s
2024 championship odds: 70-1
Outlook: Suárez is coming off a frustrating season where the result did not meet the expectation. He and the team are hopeful a new look with crew chief Matt Swiderski will re-establish Suárez’s path forward. He won his first NASCAR Cup Series race at Sonoma Raceway in 2022 and had high confidence for 2023, which was simply not met. His 10 top-10 finishes marked the fourth time he eclipsed the double-digit finishes in this category, but his three top fives were half of his 2022 total (six). Trackhouse continues on a rise, however, and many expect Suárez to regain the positive traction he showed in 2022.
BOUNCE-BACK CANDIDATE: With a breakout 2022 season in the books, a new crew chief for 2024 and a team with all the elements in place to raise its championship game next season, expect to see Suárez not only hoist a trophy but give the organization a pair of title contenders come November. The infrastructure is in place, the talent there and the motivation never higher.
MORE: Cup drivers with the chance to rebound in 2024
NASCAR.com 2024 team previews schedule
Jan. 15: Legacy Motor Club
Jan. 16: Spire Motorsports
Jan. 17: Kaulig Racing
Jan. 18: Wood Brothers Racing
Jan. 22: Rick Ware Racing
Jan. 23: Richard Childress Racing
Jan. 24: Stewart-Haas Racing
Jan. 25: Front Row Motorsports
Jan. 26: JTG Daugherty Racing
Jan. 29: Trackhouse Racing
Jan. 30: RFK Racing
Feb. 6: 23XI Racing
Feb. 7: Joe Gibbs Racing
Feb. 8: Hendrick Motorsports
Feb. 9: Team Penske