'Malcolm in the Middle' alum Frankie Muniz swerves into a full-time NASCAR racing gig
Frankie Muniz is putting the pedal to the metal on his racing career: The "Malcolm in the Middle" alum has landed another full-time gig competing in NASCAR events.
The TV star is set to drive the No. 33 Ford F-150 in every 2025 race of the motorsports league's Craftsman Truck Series, Reaume Brothers Racing and Ford Performance announced Tuesday. The 38-year-old said he's "incredibly excited" to join the team full-time next year.
“My longstanding relationship with Ford has been a game changer, and I am thrilled to help facilitate additional support allowing us to tap into their exceptional technical and engineering resources," Muniz said Tuesday in a statement. "I’m confident that this synergy will elevate Reaume Brothers Racing and help us achieve great things together. I can’t wait to get started.”
The "Agent Cody Banks" actor has driven twice with Reaume Brothers Racing this season and has two races remaining. Team owner Josh Reaume, who is eager to expand the team's relationship with Ford Performance, said they "can make significant strides in the upcoming season" thanks to Muniz's passion and the team's collective momentum.
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Muniz is scheduled to compete next in the stock-car racing league on Saturday, driving the No. 22 More Core Diamond Drilling Services Ford in the Truck Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Florida.
The former child star started acting at age 8 and famously co-starred with Bryan Cranston in the Primetime Emmy-winning series "Malcolm in the Middle" in the early 2000s. He changed lanes in 2006 when he decided to pursue a professional race car driving career instead, competing in the Formula BMW USA Championship that year and the Champ Car Atlantic Championship from 2007 to 2009. But in 2009, after he ranked fourth in the championship standings, an injury abruptly ended his season with two races left.
After participating in celebrity races throughout his career, Muniz started racing full-time last year in the ARCA Menards Series, a low-level feeder series for NASCAR that typically features less-experienced drivers. He joined Ford Performance in 2023 and has competed in limited races in both the NASCAR Xfinity Series and the Mustang Challenge Series.
In June 2023, he crashed his Ford Mustang into the wall at the Elko Speedway in Minnesota but emerged unscathed, ending the year with a fourth-place points finish. In his Xfinity Series debut in February, he was part of a 10-car wreck and placed 33rd out of 38 at the Daytona International Speedway.
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Meanwhile, he has continued to do some acting, largely booking minor parts and making occasional cameos, including those in the AMC thriller series “Preacher,” NBC medical drama "New Amsterdam" and Comedy Central's "Awkwafina Is Nora From Queens."
He has also said that he's excited about the possibility of a “Malcolm in the Middle” reboot. In March, he revealed that the potential project was "the closest it's ever been to being a reality."
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
