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NASCAR Update: Frankie Muniz Set to Join Xfinity Chase at Phoenix’s Xfinity Party Moments After Failing to Make the Entry List

Published 03/05/2024, 12:38 AM EST

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Race fans will see a lot of Frankie Muniz this season in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. The Malcolm in the Middle star debuted at the United Rentals 300 earlier this season at Daytona but that outing did not go according to plan. At the time, he had said that Phoenix was also on his race schedule, but when the first entry list came out, Muniz was not on it. Things have been sorted out as a recent update confirmed that the Emmy nominee will be a part of the weekend’s racing action.

The 38-year-old was running fairly well at Daytona until he was involved in a significant wreck. Muniz might have been hoping to complete the race but only managed to get in 37 laps. Going into Phoenix, the actor-turned-racer will have redemption on his mind as he looks to make an impact in one of the biggest racing competitions in the world.

Frankie Muniz was replaced by his team’s owner in the Phoenix entry list

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He might just be a part-time racer but Frankie Muniz has a fair amount of fans. The idea of an Emmy-nominated actor racing in a competition like the Xfinity Series is intriguing enough by itself for people to tune in. So when it was initially revealed that he would not be one of the drivers starting next weekend’s race in Phoenix, fans were rather disappointed. But this disappointment did not last long.

Eminent journalist Joseph Srigley revealed the news on his official X handle, and it turns out that Frankie Muniz will be driving the #35 The Hot Chick Ford Mustang in the Phoenix race on Saturday for JG Motorsports. Earlier, it was reported that team owner Joey Gase would be competing in the #35 but that since has changed.

After the events at the Daytona International Speedway, Muniz will be a man hungry to run well in the series and earn a fairly high finish in Phoenix. He was running pretty well in his previous race before he crashed and had to retire so it is safe to say that the #35 is no slouch.

Phoenix won’t be the last race he takes part in this year’s Xfinity Series either. According to the Daytona Beach News-Journal, the former actor will start 10-16 races this season, which is quite a significant number of races for a part-time racer. The 38-year-old believes that he has a point to prove as he wasn’t happy with how his season ended last year.

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Actor-turned-racer reveals feeling stupid after unfortunate Daytona mishap

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This was a bit surprising to hear since Muniz took part in the ARCA Menards Series in 2023, among other competitions, and finished P4 on the points table with multiple finishes in the top 10. However, the 38-year-old said that his season had ended with some bad luck and race retirements. When the same thing happened at the Daytona International Speedway, he wasn’t the happiest and said that it made him feel stupid, even if it wasn’t entirely his fault.

“You can always look back and go, “Maybe I should’ve done that. I could’ve done this.” But these races, it’s kind of luck, to be honest. I feel stupid. My season last year kind of ended pretty bad. We went on a streak of a bunch of bad luck and DNFs. And after starting so promising, I really was hoping to reinvigorate the excitement of just having some positivity,” the Malcolm in the Middle star said as per a report in The Daytona Beach News-Journal.

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It will be interesting to see how Muniz goes about his redemption arc in Phoenix; more so in a car that looks quite fast and competitive with some of the full-timers. How do you think the actor-turned-racer will fare this coming Saturday? Let us know your thoughts.

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Written by:

Nilavro Ghosh

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Nilavro Ghosh is a NASCAR Writer at EssentiallySports, where he is known for his creative yet easy-to-read writing style. Before taking up his role as a sports journalist at ES, Nilavro has written for some of the top publishing houses, like The Telegraph. While most journalists stop at covering live events and taking the news to the readers, Nilavro goes the extra mile to give fans a platform for them to express their thoughts through his 'race reaction' pieces.
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Edited by:

Jayant Chhabra