Frankie Muniz (former “Malcolm in the Middle”), the NASCAR star who was once a member of the TV show, suffered a disappointing setback at the Atlanta Motor Speedway, where he finished in the 26th position after a frustrating accident.
Muniz spoke with FOX’s Bob Pockrass about his disappointment after the race. He suggested that his peers on the track have not yet given him the respect they deserve.
Muniz drives currently for Reaume Brothers Racing. It is a small team that has fewer resources. Muniz had high expectations for a Top-10 finish in Atlanta.
He was forced to drive in a situation where he had three lanes, and collided with Connor Mosack. Muniz spoke about his feeling that other drivers were not giving him enough room to maneuver or show consideration.
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“I definitely don’t get respect out there — 100 percent, nobody goes with me,” Muniz stated. Someone pushed me into the car on my side, and then we left.
Muniz was confident that he could compete with the less-funded teams, and achieve top-10 results purely by merit. He said, “We came close to being in the top 10 which was a fantastic showing for our team.” It’s not something anyone expected us to do, so it is a great achievement. [is good] that we were there on merit, no lucky breaks — we raced our way up there.”
Muniz revealed his sense of missed opportunity. “I am obviously angry because I thought we were just coasting; I just wanted to get to the finish because I knew that we would be in a great position.”
NASCAR Truck Series rookie Driver hopes that his racing style and clean manner will earn him respect in the future. What do you mean by “I want to be respected out there”? I hope that, given how tightly I raced and the fact I was clean throughout, this is the case. It’s hard until I do.
Muniz also struggled to progress due to technical issues.
My starter was bad, and that’s the only reason I had to press it. [earlier in the race]Muniz explained a track stall. “I spun and stalled the car because of a puncture. Had I not stalled, I could have made it back to pit lane. If we had fixed the problem and carried on, then maybe we would have been able to pass some trucks. … They told me, ‘You’re done.'”
Frankie Muniz continues to be an entertaining storyline for fans of racing as well as entertainment. His goal is to become a respected member of the NASCAR Truck Series race circuit, and he’s overcoming the technical as well as the competitive obstacles.