Back for more! This afternoon, YouTube sensation Cleetus McFarland returned to the ARCA Menards Series, making his second-career start. McFarland made his series debut at the season-opening race at Daytona, impressing many. Though his result wasn’t what he wanted (after being involved in a late-race pile-up), he turned quite a few heads by running in the top 10 for much of that race. Shortly after, he announced that he would be participating both in the ‘Dega race and at Bristol later this fall.
In preparation for today’s race, McFarland was coached by former NASCAR driver and champion, Greg Biffle. He also sought out superspeedway ace Dale Earnhardt Jr. for advice on how to approach driving at Talladega. How did it all pay off? Let’s talk about it. Here’s how Cleetus McFarland fared in today’s General Tire 200 at ‘Dega.
Garrett Mitchell (better known as Cleetus McFarland on YouTube) is back for his second #ARCA start this afternoon @TALLADEGA, after some coaching from Greg Biffle.@EddieKalegi on why he is good for NASCAR.
Full episode: https://t.co/0hWHxcm1jS pic.twitter.com/kwr0s5ftUa— Motorsports Today (@MtrsprtsToday) April 26, 2025
McFarland rolled off today in the 18th position. But despite starting around mid-pack, he wasted little time making his way toward the front. Within the first five laps, he was battling in the lower half of the top 10. Barring any on-track accidents, it looked as though Cleetus McFarland was on track for a well-deserved top 10 finish. Unfortunately, around lap 15, the 30 car started falling through the field.
Not even a quarter of the way through the race, McFarland radioed his crew, stating that something was wrong with his number 30 Ford. At first it was reported that the team suspected an engine issue. During the race’s first caution, McFarland made his way down pit road, where his crew promptly lifted the hood to diagnose the situation. After evaluation, the team started that there was an issue with the valve train. The team sent McFarland back out to nurse the car to the finish.
Despite his engine issues, McFarland stuck it out to the finish. Surviving a chaotic finish that, predictably, ended up with many wrecked racecars, McFarland was able to narrowly avoid incident after incident, climbing his way up the leaderboard to 10th. During the race, NASCAR live-streamed Cleetus McFarland’s in-car camera on their YouTube channel. The stream got a mind-boggling 70,000 views!
After narrowly avoiding a wreck, McFarland celebrated, fist pumping in the air.
How do you feel about McFarland’s performance today? Would you like to see him run more races? Do you think he has what it takes to make it in NASCAR? Let us know what you think!
