CONCORD, N.C. — Daniel Suárez might not have had the fastest car, but he was fastest when it mattered most and, with an assist from Mother Nature, that was enough to earn him the upset victory Sunday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway in the Coca-Cola 600, putting a punctuation point on an emotional weekend that saw NASCAR grapple with the unexpected loss of two-time champion Kyle Busch.With rain approaching, Suárez and his Spire Motorsports team gambled on pit strategy late to jump ahead of the faster Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas, a lead he held on to during a sequence of restarts. That was the difference as rain began to fall shortly thereafter, prompting NASCAR to park the field on pit road. By the time Suárez got out of his car, the rain had picked up, and officials quickly called the race, setting off an unbridled celebration.It was Suárez’s third career Cup Series win and first since February 2024.“Every win is special, but it’s been a second, right?” Suárez said. “The team did an amazing job. It wasn’t easy. We had a lot of issues throughout the race. They put us in contention, and we executed well.”

This win is for Kyle. pic.twitter.com/1pcAKDpOvp

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) May 25, 2026Adding to the emotion was that Suárez previously drove for Busch in NASCAR’s third-tier Truck Series, and Busch was instrumental in helping Suárez improve his craft and adapt to a new culture after moving from Mexico to pursue his NASCAR career. That assist was pivotal, with Suárez eventually progressing and winning a championship in NASCAR’s second-tier series and then advancing to Cup in 2017.The significance of winning on the same day NASCAR honored Busch wasn’t lost on Suárez, who throughout the weekend wore a Busch T-shirt and dedicated the win to the Busch family. After getting out of his car, Suárez put on a hat with Busch’s car number and at one point gestured toward the sky.The 41-year-old Busch died unexpectedly Thursday after suffering from severe pneumonia that progressed into sepsis, “resulting in rapid and overwhelming associated complications,” his family said Saturday in a statement.Before the race, NASCAR paid respects to Busch in a touching ceremony that included Busch’s wife, Samantha, and two young children, Brexton and Lennix, his parents, and his brother, former NASCAR champion Kurt Busch. NASCAR CEO Steve O’Donnell emphasized that the Busches will always be part of the NASCAR family and have their full support.“It’s been a very tough week,” Suárez said. “Kyle, he was special, man. This one is for Kyle, Samantha, Brexton, Lennix, and all his family. This win is for him. If it wasn’t for Kyle, I wasn’t going to be an Xfinity champion. I wasn’t going to have my shot in the Cup Series. To win this race for him is unbelievable.”Further adding to the theme of the weekend was that it was a Spire car in victory lane, with the team having close ties to Kyle Busch and crediting him for helping the upstart organization grow into one that has won multiple races this season.The relationship between Spire and Busch begins with team co-owner Jeff Dickerson’s long association with Busch, Spire purchasing Kyle Busch Motorsports’ Truck Series team in September 2023, and Busch’s continued driving for the truck team, most recently last week when he drove to victory at Dover Motor Speedway — Busch’s last career NASCAR win.“When the rain first started falling, you find yourself thinking, man, you’re going to get some text from (Busch), like, ‘You lucky a—hole,'” Dickerson said. “But not only is Kyle in the fabric of our place, we’re in that (KBM) shop, a lot of his former employees came over — I hope it’s rewarding for them, too. It’s been a tough couple of days; it’s still hard to believe.“I still can’t believe it. It means a lot.”JGR’s Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin finished second and third. Series points leader Tyler Reddick finished fourth, and Kyle Larson completed the top five.With the win, Suárez moved to 10th in the series points standings, well positioned to qualify for NASCAR’s Chase playoff at the halfway mark of the regular season.“We’re not contending for wins yet, but we’re a strong team,” Suárez said. “I said this in January, my goal was for (the media) not to be surprised when you guys see (his team) in the top 10, in the top five, contending for wins, and that’s still my goal today. I believe that we still have work to do, but definitely we’re in the right path to do that.”