236 feet. That’s all that separated Ross Chastain last November from an unlikely NASCAR Cup Series championship. That’s the differential between Joey Logano crossing the finish line in last year’s Championship race at the Phoenix Raceway ahead of Chastain’s No. 1 Chevrolet.

In being so close, yet to far way, this has been Trackhouse Racing’s rallying cry this offseason and into this year. What can you do each day to make yourself 236 feet better? What can you do to ensure that you’re at least 1 foot ahead of the field at Phoenix this November?

So far, that motto has been working.

Through three races of the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season, Trackhouse Racing drivers Ross Chastain and Daniel Suárez have been putting up some impressive performances and as a result both are ranked inside the top five in the NASCAR Cup Series driver points standings for the second consecutive week – the first season the organization has had both drivers ranked within the top five in points.

Following Las Vegas, Ross Chastain leads the NASCAR Cup Series points standings by a mere three points over second place Alex Bowman and 21 points up on third place Kevin Harvick. Chastain’s teammate Daniel Suárez is currently ranked fourth in the series standings, only 25 points back from Chastain in the series lead. Suárez is the one of only two drivers to score top-10 finishes in all three races this season – Alex Bowman is the only other driver to accomplish the feat.

Now, they return to the Arizona desert for the first time since their highly charged up race weekend last November.

Looking ahead to Phoenix on Sunday, expect the Trackhouse Racing success to continue. In this race last season at Phoenix, Chastain finished runner-up to race winner Chase Briscoe and Suárez finished in the top-10 (ninth).

Chastain has made nine series starts at Phoenix Raceway posting two top-five finishes. His average finish at the 1-mile track is an 18.5.

Suárez has made 12 series starts at Phoenix, and the Monterrey, Mexico native has put up three top-10 finishes.

With how last year went and how this one has started, I expect a big weekend out of this duo.