NASCAR driver Daniel Suarez made Iowa his last race as a non-American

NEWTON — A decade ago, Daniel Suarez was a stranger in a strange land, a proven Mexican auto racer who wanted to succeed in the U.S., but didn’t speak the language.

Suarez has said he learned English from watching cartoons as much as anything.

“What’s your favorite cartoon?” a female fan asked him Sunday afternoon at Suarez’s merchandise hauler, three hours before the racer competed in NASCAR’s Iowa Corn 350 at Iowa Speedway.

“Speedy Gonzalez,” Suarez instantly replied.

“Of course!” the woman roared, before wishing him luck and telling him to be safe.

Suarez finished ninth in the 36-car race, his first Top Ten finish in his last 10 starts. “A step in the right direction,” he called it. He then flew back to his new home, NASCAR epicenter Charlotte, N.C. There, on Tuesday afternoon, he will take his oath to become an American citizen, and will have dual-citizenship.

“I feel very good, honestly,” Suarez said here Saturday. “It hasn’t sunk in yet, how big of a deal it is. But this is very special to finally hit this milestone.

“It’s been a lot to process to get to this point. I don’t think 95 percent of the people in this room (the track’s media center) understand the process to be able to get it done.”

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Suarez’s English is quite good now. He was at ease exchanging salutations with fans at that merchandise hauler, where he signed helmets, shirts, caps, banners, and all sorts of things featuring his car No. 99 and the green, red and white national colors of Mexico.

“Thank you so much for doing this,” a middle-aged woman told him. “This is super-exciting.”

“Welcome to Iowa!” a man said. “Muchas gracias!”

“I find him to be extremely honest,” Troi Mulford of Winterset said about her favorite racer. “He doesn’t whine on social media. He’s just an awesome guy.”

“Congratulations on your citizenship Tuesday,” a young adult woman told Suarez. “My mom wanted me to tell you you’re a sexy (word that rhymes with ”ditch“).”

When Suarez was chauffeured in a motorized cart from the infield to the grandstand side of the racetrack and back, he got friendly shouts from fans in the parking lots who instantly recognized him along the way.

“Amigo!” “Hola!” “Ese!”

Amid the white people who formed the vast majority of the sellout crowd of 50,000-plus for the first Cup Series race here were Mexico natives who live in central Iowa. They, too, made their way to the hauler to get photos taken with Suarez and encourage him.

This isn’t IndyCar or Formula 1. NASCAR is a fully American deal, with all of its races held in the U.S. and 35 of Sunday’s 36 drivers natives of this nation.

Suarez is trying to bring more Mexicans into the fan fold, holding “Daniel’s Amigos” events at various NASCAR sites. One will be at Chicago’s Harrison Park Thursday as a lead-up to that city’s Cup Series street race there July 7.

Suarez got his first Cup Series win two years ago at Sonoma, Calif., in front of many of his fans. He smashed a pinata in jubilation after getting out of his car. The win got him in the Cup Series playoffs, where he’ll also be this year because he won in Atlanta in February.

He had just one other Top Ten this year before Iowa, and that was two months ago. This is a tough circuit.

For as many fans as Suarez had here, he caught a lot of flak from others for making contact with the left rear bumper of Ryan Larson’s car on Lap 221, spinning Larson out. Larson finished 35th after looking like he had a great chance to win.

“It’s all right,” crew chief Matt “Squid” Swiderski told Suarez on their two-way radio communications at the time. “Let’s move on.” And they did.

A racing incident is small potatoes compared to U.S. citizenship.

“A few years ago, I didn’t know if I really wanted to do this,” Suarez said. “But now it just makes sense. I’m getting married next month and in a couple years I might start a family,” Suarez said.

“Without citizenship, with the green card that I have today, if something bad happens I can get kicked out of the country.”

I think a comedian once said NASCAR was nothing but Kyle, Kyle, Kyle, Kyle and Dale, or maybe vice versa. Now there’s a Suarez, with help from Speedy Gonzalez.

Comments: (319) 398-8440; mike.hlas@thegazette.com