NOTEBOOK: Frankie Muniz returns to ARCA in search of victory at Talladega

Welcome back, Frankie.

Frankie Muniz, who contested the entire ARCA Menards Series schedule in 2023 with Rette Jones Racing, will reunite with the team to compete in Saturday’s General Tire 200 at Talladega Superspeedway (11:30 a.m. CT / 12:30 p.m. ET on FS1).

It’s a homecoming of sorts for Muniz, who opened his 2024 season by competing in a pair of NASCAR Xfinity Series events at Daytona International Speedway and Phoenix Raceway for Joey Gase Motorsports.

Muniz made his ARCA Menards Series debut one year ago at Daytona, qualifying 16th and finishing 11th. He followed that with five consecutive top-10 finishes at Phoenix, Talladega, Kansas Speedway, Charlotte Motor Speedway and Berlin Raceway.

His season-best finish came at Michigan International Speedway at the midway point of the year. Starting seventh, Muniz was able to gain two positions to score a fifth-place finish at the two-mile oval in Brooklyn, Michigan.

Saturday’s General Tire 200 will mark Muniz’s second start at Talladega in ARCA competition.

Last season at Talladega, Muniz raced inside the top 10 for most of the day and crossed the finish line ninth. More importantly, Muniz left Talladega as the ARCA Menards Series championship leader.

While he was unable to maintain that place in the standings throughout the summer months, Muniz’s experience at Talladega one year ago should pay dividends as he prepares for a summer of racing that could include a few more ARCA Menards Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series starts, as well as some Late Model races.

“I hope to get another opportunity or two in the ARCA Menards Series, but I plan to return to the NASCAR Xfinity Series and spend the summer behind the wheel of a Late Model. This is our unofficial early start to the summer,” Muniz said.

Daytona winner Gus Dean returns to sight of his first ARCA victory

Talladega Superspeedway holds a special place in the heart of Bluffton, South Carolina’s Gus Dean.

Dean’s first ARCA Menards Series victory came at Talladega on April 29, 2016 while driving for 2014 ARCA Menards Series champion Mason Mitchell. It was only the second start for Dean in the ARCA Menards Series after making his debut a few months earlier at Daytona International Speedway.

As is often the case at Talladega, Dean was in the right place at the right time. He had just edged ahead of Josh Williams down the backstretch when a crash brought out the caution flag and brought a premature end to the event. Dean was scored as the leader, which allowed him to make the coveted trip to Victory Lane.

“It got really hairy there toward the end,” Dean said that afternoon in Victory Lane. “Mason and those guys made an excellent pit call. It really played out for us. We were able to come back through the field.”

He has since earned two more ARCA Menards Series wins, with his most recent coming at Daytona in February.

Now Dean returns to Talladega for the eighth time as he looks to secure his second victory of the 2024 campaign aboard the No. 55 Venturini Motorsports Toyota. He’ll do so with a new sponsor, Hardcore Fish and Game, adorning the hood and quarter panels of his Toyota.

“Talladega has always been a very special track to me,” Dean said. “It’s the site of my first career ARCA victory, and we’ve traditionally run very well since then. I’m looking forward to returning with the Venturini Motorsports team for my second race of the season and seeing how this race pans out.

“Hopefully, we can avoid any trouble on the race track and be in a position to put our No. 55 Hardcore Fish and Game in Victory Lane.”

Thomas Annunziata looking to do one spot better at Talladega

When the checkered flag waved to conclude the ARCA Menards Series opener at Daytona International Speedway in February, Thomas Annunziata was scored as the runner-up finisher.

It was a huge accomplishment for Annunziata, a road racer who was making his first ARCA Menards Series start. Prior to making his ARCA debut, Annunziata had competed mostly in the Trans Am Series and the Mazda MX-5 Cup. He was credited with one victory in Trans Am competition in 2023.

Prior to making his ARCA debut at Daytona, Annunziata also did some oval racing. He started in a Legend car before transitioning to a Pro Late Model in the Carolina Pro Late Model Series. He earned two victories in that series in 2023, securing trips to Victory Lane at Orange County Speedway and Tri-County Motor Speedway.

His runner-up finish at Daytona was a combination of skill and luck, as it usually is at superspeedways. He was third in the inside lane going down the backstretch when a multi-car crash wiped out nearly everyone around him. Yet, somehow, Annunziata emerged unscathed and followed race winner Dean across the finish line.

This weekend Annunziata is back with the same team, McClure Racing, and he has his sights set on doing one position better in the No. 44 Chevrolet.

NOTES:

• Jason Kitzmiller will have a familiar face to ARCA Menards Series fans as his crew chief on Saturday afternoon. Frank Kimmel, the 10-time ARCA Menards Series champion, will lead Kitzmiller’s strategy. He last worked as an ARCA Menards Series crew chief in 2020 at Daytona for World of Outlaws star David Gravel.
• Ben Peterson, the grandson of longtime team owner and ARCA Menards Series competitor Wayne Peterson, is slated to make his first ARCA Menards Series start since 2019 this Saturday at Talladega.
• Several drivers who didn’t get the chance to race at Daytona in February will hit the track this weekend at Talladega. They include Eric Caudell, Cody Dennison, Chuck Buchanan, A.J. Moyer and Dale Shearer.
• Casey Carden will make his first start of 2024 Saturday at Talladega for Rise Motorsports. It will also be his first start on a superspeedway. His previous six ARCA Menards Series starts have come on road courses and short tracks.