Daniel Suarez will soon be at another career crossroads

Over a span of nine years, Daniel Suarez has put together a NASCAR career that would take most drivers two decades to live through. 

Since winning the Xfinity Series championship in 2016, Suarez has driven for four different Cup Series organizations in eight-and-a-half seasons. Come 2026 - or whenever Suarez finds himself back in the Cup Series - he'll be with a fifth Cup Series team. 

The announcement that Suarez and Trackhouse Racing would mutually part ways at the conclusion of 2025 wasn't news to Suarez, who had known for some time that he wouldn't be back with the organization that built itself around him five years ago. 

"I had known for several months that it was going to happen," Suarez told Fox Sports' Bob Pockrass in Chicago on Saturday. "It's just like anything in life - things change, people change, companies change - and that's okay. (There is) nothing wrong with that. There just wasn't really a love anymore. But there's no hard feelings at all." 

Suarez came to Trackhouse as the organization's flagship driver in 2021. After driving for three teams in the previous three seasons, Suarez had finally found stability. It was with Trackhouse that he scored the first win of his Cup Series career at Sonoma in 2022, as well as another win at Atlanta in 2024. 

But 2025 has been a bleak year for Suarez. The ninth-year driver is 29th in the points standings through 19 races, behind both of his Trackhouse teammates. He's trending towards having his worst season in a Trackhouse Chevrolet to date and his first season outside the top-20 in points since 2021. 

"The last six months, eight months have been very difficult for me," Suarez said. "I knew this was going to happen. I wasn't very happy anymore. It was just a matter of time to end this chapter."

"Daniel's been a huge part of this company for four-and-a-half years now," said Trackhouse Racing owner Justin Marks in a news conference on Sunday. "We felt like that relationship had (bore) a lot of fruit for us, but it was time to move on. This isn't a sport where you do the same thing forever. As we grow, we felt that it was time to wrap up that relationship and work to try to help him find the next opportunity."

The question of what Suarez does next is a tough one - does he drop back down to the Xfinity Series full-time, potentially driving for JR Motorsports? Does he find a full-time Cup Series ride with a lower-tier team, or part-time Cup Series opportunities alongside a full-time ride in a lower division? 

What Suarez ultimately decides to do in 2026 will have a significant effect on how quickly he can get back into a winning opportunity. He could take a route similar to that of John Hunter Nemechek, who returned to full-time competition in the Truck Series and Xfinity Series from 2021-23 after being booted from his Cup Series ride at Front Row Motorsports. Nemechek ultimately found his way back to the Cup Series in 2024 with LEGACY Motor Club. 

Suarez could also follow Corey LaJoie and make select Cup Series starts in an effort to keep the most amount of eyes on him as possible, along with making spot starts in the Truck Series and Xfinity Series when possible. 

NASCAR is still all about Sunday, but how Suarez gets back to the Cup Series - at least, in a competitive capacity - after 2025 is unclear. Yet again, Suarez has found himself at a fork in the road.