Frankie Muniz
(Photo: Adam Glanzman/NASCAR)

Second in ARCA points, Frankie Muniz and Rette Jones Racing are prepared for Talladega

Rette Jones Racing April 20, 2023

TALLADEGA, Ala. — ARCA Menards Series rookie Frankie Muniz heads to Talladega Superspeedway, the site of Saturday’s General Tire 200, looking to keep his impressive start to the 2023 season intact.

After finishing an impressive 11th in the season-opener at Daytona International Speedway in February, Muniz tackled his hometown track in Phoenix Raceway with ease, earning a strong, sixth-place finish in the General Tire 150.

With two top-11 finishes in the books, Muniz, the former “Malcolm in the Middle” television actor, invades the 2.66-mile superspeedway hoping to continue the momentum while in search of his first career top-five finish.

“I’ve been waiting for Talladega since the checkered flag flew at Phoenix,” Muniz said with a smile. “I’ve had an absolute blast at both Daytona and Phoenix. Strong race cars from my Rette Jones Racing team, along with confidence in myself have really put us on the map heading to Talladega.”

RELATED: Everything to know about Saturday’s Talladega race

Frankie Muniz
(Photo: Adam Glanzman/ARCA Racing)

Unlike at Daytona, Muniz has never turned a professional lap at Talladega Superspeedway, but the Phoenix native has spent time in the simulator to prepare him for the 76 laps that await him on April 22.

“I feel pretty confident about racing at Talladega on Saturday,” Muniz said. “Even though I haven’t been able to turn a lap on the track, I feel like the time I have spent preparing from the simulator to watching previous races and just reaching out to some of my fellow drivers about Talladega will all be a big help.”

As far as his approach to the third ARCA Menards Series race of the season, Muniz plans to stick to a path similar to the one he took at Daytona where, he minded his manners and waited for the opportunity to muscle to the front.

“We had a good game plan, and it worked out for the most part,” Muniz said. “We had a fast race car, and I felt like if we had another lap we could have gotten ourselves a top-10 finish, but 11th isn’t too bad, either, in your ARCA debut.

“I learned a lot about the draft and earning the trust of my competitors and vice-versa. I feel very confident drafting with some of the veterans like Gus (Dean), Greg (Van Alst) and others, and I feel like when that green flag drops on Saturday, those two guys, in particular, will have fast cars, and I will do everything I can to stay with them.

“Hopefully we can avoid any trouble on the track and deliver another strong finish that will carry us to Kansas Speedway in May.”

As was the case at Daytona, HairClub will return at Talladega and serve as the primary partner on the team’s No. 30 Ford Mustang.

Founded in 1976, HairClub is North America’s No. 1 provider of hair regrowth, replacement and restoration solutions. For more than 40 years, HairClub has helped 600,000-plus people regrow, replace or restore hair that they love. HairClub has more than 120 locations throughout the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico, and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tokyo-based Aderans Co. Ltd., the world’s leading provider of total hair loss solutions.

“It’s great to be representing the HairClub brand again,” Muniz said. “They were very instrumental in helping make my ARCA Menards Series debut successful both on and off the track. I am very blessed and thankful to have the opportunity to work with them again and try to put them in Victory Lane.”

Frankie Muniz
(Photo: Adam Glanzman/NASCAR)

ARCA championship-winning crew chief and co-owner Mark Rette was impressed with Muniz’s performance in the first two races, and he looks forward to seeing the driver’s attentiveness continue at Talladega.

“I feel really good about Frankie going to Talladega this weekend,” Rette said. “He has been working hard to prepare himself for more superspeedway racing this weekend. He has asked a lot of questions and been very focused on making sure the little mistakes he made at Daytona don’t happen again on Saturday.

“I feel like Frankie knows who he can trust on the track, and if the opportunity arises, we will try and work with them as much as possible. At the end of the day, we just want to have a successful race with a satisfying finish and move on to Kansas Speedway.”

For the 2023 ARCA Menards Series season, Rette Jones Racing will continue its longtime partnership with Ford Performance but has upgraded its fleet to include the Ford Mustang continuing this weekend at Talladega.

Entering Talladega, Muniz sits second in the ARCA Menards Series championship standings, 10 markers in the arrears to championship leader Greg Van Alst with 18 races remaining.

Rette Jones Racing stands a respectable fourth in the ARCA Menards Series championship owner standings.

For more on Frankie Muniz please visit munizracing.com, like him on Facebook (FrankieMuniz4) and follow him on Instagram (@frankiemuniz4) and Twitter (@frankiemuniz).

For more on Rette Jones Racing, please visit RetteJonesRacing.com, like them on Facebook (Rette Jones Racing), or follow them on Instagram (@RetteJones30) and Twitter (@RetteJones30).