Daniel Suárez has to make a tough choice: his newborn baby or the NASCAR postseason. As the regular season comes to an end, the Mexican driver has to balance his growing family with the most important part of his racing career.
When asked what would happen if Julia went into labor during a racing weekend, Daniel Suárez answered without hesitation. The Spire Motorsports driver acknowledged that he doesn’t have a specific strategy, but he made it clear that if the scheduling caused a conflict, Sunday’s Cup Series race would still be his top priority.
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“Maybe if baby was coming Saturday, maybe missing a Saturday will be okay right now if it’s somewhere close but not Sunday. Like Sunday, I’m not missing a race. I just can’t, you know, being in the playoffs, being so competitive with the team, and we have just so many great things that we’re building that I just can’t.”
Suárez and his wife, Julia Piquet, met in 2012 through her brother, former racer Nelson Piquet Jr. They didn’t start dating until 2019, but their romance took off, and in 2024 they were married in Brasília, Brazil, Julia’s birthplace. And now Suárez has to emotionally balance his family and the most important part of his NASCAR season as they are ready to have their first child together.
In April, the couple announced they were expecting their first child. They wore matching “Dad” and “Mom” caps on social media while sharing an embrace. Suárez wrote a heartfelt caption, “The best is on the way.”
But the timing couldn’t be more complex. Suárez currently sits 11th in the Cup Series standings with only four regular-season races left. He therefore seems to be in a good position to make it to the NASCAR postseason, barring a catastrophic collapse. However, there isn’t much space for a weekend off in this year’s championship scenario.
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NASCAR now employs a 10-race Chase structure in place of the old elimination-based playoff system. All qualified drivers remain championship eligible through the season finale. Every race contributes to the title fight.
Similarly, every point earned during the regular season affects who advances to the postseason, as the ‘win-and-you’re-in’ format is out. Missing even one race could hurt Suárez’s title chances or knock him out of the top 16 completely.
If Suárez needs to leave, he will likely use the “standby driver” rule. NASCAR rules state that whoever starts the race gets the points for where the car finishes. Suárez can start the race, park during the first caution flag, and let a backup driver take the wheel. Meanwhile, he can rush to the hospital.
This standby strategy has been used before in NASCAR. In 2010, Jimmie Johnson kept Aric Almirola on standby for multiple races while waiting for his daughter’s birth. In 2022, Trevor Bayne stood by for Kyle Busch when Busch and his wife expected their baby.
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NASCAR does have a special waiver rule for drivers. This rule lets drivers miss a race for medical problems, family emergencies, or the birth of a child without losing their spot in the Chase.
NASCAR also grants waivers without stripping accumulated points in such circumstances. For example, NASCAR gave Denny Hamlin a waiver in 2025 when he missed the Mexico City race for the birth of his son. This allowed him to remain fully playoff eligible while keeping his playoff points.
However, Suárez does not want to miss the start.
“If this was the previous format of NASCAR, and we are not in the playoffs yet, and we already won a race, oh, that’s fine. It’s not a big deal,” he explained. He noted that the old system would have made the decision much easier.
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For now, Daniel Suárez is hoping everything falls into place naturally. He and Julia hope to balance his push for a NASCAR championship with becoming first-time parents.
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