CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Daniel Suarez, the only Mexican driver at NASCAR’s top level, will replace Justin Haley at Spire Motorsports starting with the 2026 Cup Series season in a move announced Wednesday.
Previously announced was that Suarez, the first driver hired by Trackhouse Racing when it launched in 2021, is being replaced after five seasons by 19-year-old Connor Zilisch next year.
Spire co-owner Jeff Dickerson said the pairing gives Suarez and the No. 7 Chevrolet team an opportunity to prove both are capable of being weekly contenders. Suarez has not won a Cup Series race this year and missed the 16-driver field for the playoffs, while Haley has the No. 7 car 31st in the season standings with just two top-10 finishes.
Haley scored the only Cup win in Spire history with a victory in July 2019 at Daytona International Speedway. Suarez earned both of his Cup Series career wins with Trackhouse and finished a career-best 10th in the standings in 2022.
“When it came down to it, it’s just a thing where I think we need each other,” Dickerson said. “I think all of us love a good story of redemption and giving people a platform to prove doubters wrong. Daniel needs to show everybody that this year was an outlier, and we want to show everybody that the 7 car’s performance this year was an outlier as well.”