Julia Piquet's 3-word reaction speaks volumes after Daniel Suárez’s All-Star qualifying and strong pit crew challenge performance

Daniel Suárez's eventful All-Star Race weekend began on Friday, as Trackhouse Racing's No. 99 team showed flashes of speed and coordination. However, his wife, Julia Piquet's three-word Instagram Story perfectly captured the intense, mixed emotions of the day.

Suárez is one of 20 drivers locked in for the NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway on May 18. On Friday, he competed in the highly anticipated time trials and the Pit Crew Challenge. While he missed out on the top honor by mere fractions of a second, Suárez and his No. 99 crew still put in a strong showing with a runner-up finish.

Julia Piquet recently posted an Instagram story featuring a collage of Daniel Suárez's on-track moments, captioned:

"Rollercoaster of emotions"

Daniel Suárez's All-Star practice in a heartfelt Story by Julia Piquet. Source: @juliapiquet (via Instagram)

A longtime fixture in the NASCAR paddock, Julia is often seen supporting the Trackhouse driver at races and celebrating milestones with him on social media. Her latest post showed race footage of his practice run with photos of his No. 99 Freeway Insurance Chevrolet.

Unlike regular race weekends, the All-Star format brings a unique twist. Ahead of the time trials on Friday, the All-Star Open qualifying session recorded the cars by the total time it took to execute a four-tire pit stop without penalties. Michael McDowell and the No. 71 Spire Motorsports crew stole the show at the Pit Crew Challenge, with a lightning-fast stop of 12.587 seconds to win $100,000.

Daniel Suárez wasn't far behind, clocking a 12.600-second time, good enough to put Trackhouse Racing in second among the NASCAR Cup Series' 38-car field. He also took to X after the session to thank his 99 team crew members:

"We were fastest overall but pushed a little too hard speeding 🥲. So proud of our guys Milan, Josh, Seth, Charlie and Josh - second fastest pitstop in the pit crew challenge 👊🏽 We'll make up for it tomorrow boys"

Close behind him, Noah Gragson's No. 4 Front Row Motorsports team finished at 12.669 seconds, as only seven pit crews dipped below the 13-second mark.

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Daniel Suárez ends time trial last as All-Star heat structure sets the stage for dramatic Saturday

Daniel Suárez during the NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Pit Crew Challenge at North Wilkesboro Speedway. Source: Getty

Friday's All-Star Open session was preceded by the All-Star Open's combined practice trials to determine starting positions for Saturday's All-Star heats. The unique format sees 20 drivers split into two 10-car heats, with odd-numbered qualifiers competing in Heat 1, and even-numbered drivers in Heat 2.

The two All-Star heat races are scheduled for 5:20 PM ET (Heat 1) and 6:15 PM ET (Heat 2) on May 17. Daniel Suárez, having recorded the slowest time among the 20 locked-in entries, will start last in Heat 2. Brad Keselowski's No. 6 RFK Racing team secured the pole for Heat 1 after topping the charts among the locked-in drivers, setting up a strong front-row start.

The rest of the field for the NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro will be decided by the respective heats on Saturday in two 75-lap dashes.

Suárez's Trackhouse teammate, Shane van Gisbergen, delivered another highlight for the team driving the No. 88 car in the All-Star Open qualifying. SVG secured the pole with a strong 88.685-second lap at 76.112 mph, giving him a prime shot to race his way into the main event.

Meanwhile, Suárez's lap time of 106.931 seconds at 63.125 mph left him with work to do in the Heats, under a busy All-Star weekend schedule.