Cleetus McFarland’s 2026 NASCAR Racing Schedule
What’s Happening? Despite his internet fame, Garrett Mitchell, by his screen name Cleetus McFarland, has recently taken to stock car racing…
Cleetus McFarland and his long-time friend and YouTube collaborator Squirrel McNutt are set to take on Talladega this weekend in the ARCA Menards Series. Here’s everything you need to know about how to watch their first race together at ‘Dega.
Saturday’s Alabama Manufactured Housing 200 will bring the largest ARCA Menards Series field at Talladega Superspeedway since 2012, with a competitive and noteworthy field.
While McFarland, real name Garrett Mitchell, has been given the green light for the ARCA race, NASCAR has shut the door, for now, on his bid to compete in the higher-tier O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race at the same track this weekend. Officials say they want him to log more laps on short tracks and gain more seat time in ARCA before he takes a shot at superspeedway racing at that level.
On a similar note, but with a different result, McNutt, who goes into the ARCA record book under his real name, George Siciliano, is now cleared to race at Talladega in the ARCA Menards Series after working his way through three successful preliminary races, two in the ARCA Menards Series East, and one last week in the main ARCA Menards Series.
This is now the pairing of Mitchell and Siciliano third time racing together in as many weeks. With approval now in hand for Talladega, Siciliano will make good on a promise he and Mitchell made to honor their late friend, NASCAR Cup Series driver Greg Biffle.
Fans can catch the Alabama Manufactured Housing 200 on FS1 on Saturday, April 25, at 12:30 PM ET. Those on the move can tune in to race coverage on the Fox Sports App and listen on MRN and NASCAR SiriusXM Radio.
There will be no qualifying session for the race. Positions 1 through 36 will be set by the current 2026 ARCA Menards Series owner points standings, with up to four more starters, positions 37 through 40, determined by speed in group practice.
As for pit road, the race will follow a Modified Live Pit Stop procedure. A caution is scheduled at or near lap 38, and teams will not be allowed to add or move tires to or from the pit box once the race gets underway.
Mitchell made the leap from YouTuber to stock car racer in 2025, entering four ARCA Menards Series races during the season. The 30-year-old bagged two top-10 finishes, including a 10th-place run at Talladega and a career-best ninth-place finish at Charlotte Motor Speedway across those starts.
This year, Mitchell is staying the course in ARCA, once again driving the No. 30 Ford Mustang for Rette Jones Racing, as he continues to build laps and make his way up the ladder.
After making two starts at Daytona and Kansas, where he finished 11th and 20th, respectively, Mitchell is set to race this weekend at Talladega before he goes to Michigan for his last race of the season.
Mitchell also made his ARCA Menards Series East debut at Rockingham Speedway on April 4 and finished 4th.
He also made his NASCAR National Series debuts in the Craftsman Truck and O’Reilly Auto Parts Series this year.
So far, Mitchell has just one start in the Truck Series this year. Albeit this was his series debut at Daytona, he could only manage to finish 37th after getting involved in an early wreck.
In the OAP Series, Mitchell is scheduled to make three starts with Richard Childress Racing, of which he has made one start so far at Rockingham and managed to finish 32nd after starting from 35th. His next planned start in the No. 33 Chevy at Nashville on May 30.
What’s Happening? Despite his internet fame, Garrett Mitchell, by his screen name Cleetus McFarland, has recently taken to stock car racing…
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