HOMESTEAD, Fla.: At 38, Frankie Muniz has landed the role of his lifetime—a full-time ride in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series
The affable actor-turned-racer, who found fame in the popular sitcom “Malcolm in the Middle” from 2000-2006, decided to stop dabbling in motorsports and went all-in with Reaume Brothers Racing next season.
While Muniz has found modest success in the ARCA ranks, he’s old enough to realize that his full focus needs to be on racing to succeed.
“Being part-time is not easy,” Muniz said. “It’s hard to watch, but it’s also hard knowing that I just need experience to play catch-up to all of the people I’m competing against, and to be out of the car or truck as much as I was this year was tough.
“So, I was super excited to get my deal done early. We’ve known that I was going to sign with them for a while now and be able to announce it to where I’m literally starting today is prepping for next year. Even for my wife and my life and my son to know, here is where we’re going be then, it just makes it so nice to plan ahead.”
Although Muniz expected to spend more time behind the wheel of a truck in 2024, his original deal fell through. So did the 10 races he had hoped to run in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. When Muniz returned from Mexico this summer with a parasitic infection, he was sidelined for six weeks.
“I got really sick, like literally in bed,” Muniz said. “I lost 30 pounds. It was bad.”
Watching other drivers race was excruciating, particularly when Muniz was hoping to get reps to improve his craft. The opportunity to race in the No. 33 Reaume Brothers Ford F-150 for the remainder of the season will benefit the racer greatly when it comes to acclimating to the team.
“It’s really hard to watch on TV as a driver,” Muniz said. “I still have so much that I need to experience for the first time and that’s really the goal for these last two races. I’m doing Miami. I’m doing Phoenix.
“Not that we’re using it as a test session, but we’re using it to gel as a team and then figure out what I need or me figure out what I need, put myself in situations for the first time with these drivers and just be better prepares so when we show up at Daytona we’re head down and trying to be as competitive as possible.”
Muniz understands competition. Prior to landing his breakthrough role as Malcolm, there were plenty of auditions and ample rejections along the way. When he was a child, extracurricular activities distracted him from any disappointment. As an adult, he has learned to appreciate the chance to be one of 34 drivers who get to race on the weekend.
“I was eight, nine, 10 years old where I was going to football practice, baseball, acting was just one of the things I did,” Muniz said. “I really never took it to heart. Acting was just one of the things I did. I really didn’t take it to heart. I never officially said, “I wanted to be an actor.” I just did it and it took over my life.
“Having stepped away from acting and looking back at my career, it made me have a greater appreciation for it and the opportunity. So, I know when I have an opportunity like I do now in racing, I’ve got to do it. I’ve got to take advantage of it. I might not have another one. I might not get another season, a next race. I’ve got my head down and I’m ready to perform.”
On Friday, Muniz qualified 31st after being out of the truck for nearly a month. It’s not lost on the driver, who calls Scottsdale home, that even the 20-somethings in the field have a head start on Muniz, considering most of them have been racing since grade school.
“They are dedicating every waking moment to being the best driver they can be,” Muniz said. “So how could I think that I could come in and do it halfway? You can’t, especially, I think this weekend is my 25th oval race of my life.
“I didn’t grow up racing late models or have tons of experience, so I have to focus even more on learning and improving just to catch up. That’s my focus. That’s my goal. I don’t want people just to hear that I’m a race car driver or me to just say that I’m a race car driver, I want people to believe it and the only way to get them to believe it is to go out there and do it and impress.
“Racing is not subjective. You’re either at the top of the leaderboard or you’re not, so you kind of see where you stand and what you need to work on and that’s what I’m gonna do.”
Muniz plays the title role in Renner, a sci-fi thriller expected to be released early next year. But when Daytona Speedweek rolls around in February, his concentration will be solely on racing.
“As an actor, you don’t know what opportunity may come up where you go, ‘Hey, it’s a week. We have three weeks off. Yeah, let me do it.’ So, I’m not closing the door 100 percent to it,” Muniz said. “But I don’t want people to think I’m just doing this part-time or I’m just doing this as a hobby. I’m kind of doing it on the side.
“No, those three weeks are going to be used to prep for the next six races in a row or whatever it may be, so that’s the focus.”
Follow Lee Spencer on Twitter @CandiceSpencer or email her at: [email protected].
