CONCORD, N.C. — When Daniel Suarez was struggling to make his name in auto racing, he would often get phone calls from Kyle Busch offering words of encouragement and urging him to keep working.
That made his victory in a NASCAR Cup Series crown jewel race Sunday night all the more special.
Suarez benefited from a crucial pit call by the Spire Motorsports No. 7 Chevrolet team, then caught a break from Mother Nature to win the rain-shortened Coca-Cola 600, capping an emotional day in which the racing world remembered Busch, who died Thursday.
The 34-year-old Suarez became the first Mexican-born driver to win the Coca-Cola 600, NASCAR’s longest race. It was his third Cup Series win and first since 2024, when he was driving for Trackhouse Racing.
The victory was especially emotional for Suarez, who previously raced for Kyle Busch Motorsports, which fielded entries for NASCAR’s two lower-tier national series.
“Kyle, he was special,” Saurez said as he teared up. “I was doing this for Kyle, for (his wife) Samantha, for (his children) Brexton and Lennix, and for all of his family.”
A nonfactor for most of the race, Suarez gambled and took two tires during a late pit stop, then held off Joe Gibbs Racing drivers Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin on restarts before the race was called when the sky opened up and rain drenched the track.
NASCAR quickly made the decision to call the race with 27 laps remaining.
Bell finished second, while Hamlin wound up third. Both had a chance to catch Suarez on the two restarts, but they couldn’t clear his ride.
“It’s a bummer,” Bell said, who won a rain-shortened Coca-Cola 600 two years ago. “It wasn’t meant to be today. That’s 2026 for us.”
Hamlin said he was “just a little unlucky.”
“The 20 car (Bell) and us were just really battling because we knew whoever could clear him (would win the race),” Hamlin said. “We were really good all day. We just didn’t get to see it through.”
The race came just three days after Busch’s death sent shock waves throughout the motorsports world and beyond. The 41-year-old Las Vegas native died after severe pneumonia progressed into sepsis, resulting in rapid and overwhelming complications, according to a statement released by his family Saturday.
The two-time Cup Series champion and winner of a record 234 races across NASCAR’s three national series had become unresponsive while practicing in a Chevrolet simulator Wednesday, a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because no details were released by the family.
Busch’s family attended the race, and NASCAR CEO Steve O’Donnell told them they are part of the NASCAR community in an emotional speech before the green flag dropped.
NASCAR and Charlotte Motor Speedway honored Busch with his No. 8 and signature on the front stretch grass and a highway billboard near the main entrance of the track. The U.S. Army Golden Knights carried a Busch flag prior to the race, and each of the 39 cars in field carried a small, black No. 8 decal.
Hendrick Motorsports driver Kyle Larson won the first stage of the race, while Hamlin won the second stage and Bell won the third.
Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain, who won last year’s Coca-Cola 600 and Saturday night’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race at CMS, crashed out Sunday night when Ricky Stenhouse Jr. clipped his car in the second with 81 laps remaining in the race.
Connor Zilisch and Austin Cindric only made it 52 laps before getting caught up in a crash. Cindric got turned around and Zilisch came crashing in to the side of his No. 2 Ford, ending both drivers’ day.
Chase Elliott, a two-time race winner this year, hit the outside wall and ping-ponged into the inside wall on the 90th lap. That car was beyond repair, and he finished 37th.
“I was trying to make something happen, and I stepped over the line,” Elliott said.
Austin Hill, a regular driver in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series for Richard Childress Racing, took Busch’s spot in the Cup Series race and finished 26th. He drove the No. 33 car after RCR temporarily suspended use of the No. 8 until Busch’s 11-year-old son Brexton is ready to drive.
Austin Dillon went behind the wall with damage to the front of his car with 56 laps to go, ending any hope of an emotional win for RCR. He finished 32nd.