Frankie Muniz’s NASCAR Career Isn’t Going So Great
Malcolm in the Middle star Frankie Muniz says he’s going through a NASCAR streak of the worst kind. “I’ve had bad luck for almost two years straight,” he told racing journalist Peter Stratta after finishing out of the running in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at Rockingham Speedway in North Carolina.
“Our goal is always top 20,” Muniz told Stratta, a goal he hasn’t reached since mid-February when he finished 10th at Daytona.
He struggled with car problems in his latest race. “My power steering line burst, so I lost power steering,” Muniz explained. Turning the wheel was “the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” so difficult that “I ripped a hole in my hand.”
This article not your thing? Try these...
The latest malfunction had him feeling like he was “oddly cursed or something,” although he doesn’t blame his team. “I really love them,” Muniz said. “They’re sticking with me, and I hope the fans do, too. I hope they don’t turn on me.”
It sounds like a case of the normal ups and downs of a NASCAR driver, but Muniz is taking it hard, according to a recent post on X, per People.
“If I’m being 100% honest... Mentally/emotionally I may be at a new low,” he posted. “Just wanted to say it out loud.”
Maybe he’s not getting the support he needs from his fam? “How many times can I say, ‘Wow, I got bad luck,’” he confessed to Stratta. His wife, Paige Muniz, offered an alternative explanation: “‘Maybe it’s you, like, maybe you’re just not good.’”
Harsh, although Muniz suggested she was joking, calling his spouse “super-supportive.”
Muniz is fighting not only his high expectations for himself but also his perception of how racing fans must look at him. “I think at first, maybe people thought racing was like a hobby,” he told People. “Then to have an actor jump in, it probably is a little odd. I get that. But you earn respect or the recognition as a driver and not just as an actor when you’re out there competing and beating them, right? That’s what I’m trying to do.”
Could the Malcolm in the Middle reboot have something to do with the slump? While Muniz has focused on his NASCAR career in recent years, the sitcom revival has necessarily divided his attention. Just last month, he tweeted about his preparation for the project: “Just started watching Malcolm in the Middle episode 1. Got 151 to catch up on before we start filming again in a few days!!! Can’t wait to get back together with my old family.”
Between watching old episodes and filming new ones, Muniz might be cursed not by bad luck but divided attention.