UPDATE: Cleetus McFarland Will Race in the NASCAR O’Reilly Series This Year
What’s Happening? YouTube star-turned-NASCAR driver Garrett Mitchell, best known by his online persona Cleetus McFarland, has signed a part-time deal to…
The Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway opened the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs on Sunday night, and Playoff drivers were truly the stars of the show. Some drivers were in the headlines for good reasons, and others for bad reasons. People may have their own hot takes following this race at Darlington, but, are they overreactions?
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Sunday was an off-night for Martin Truex Jr. He started 31st, finished 18th, and scored zero stage points. It was his worst finish at an intermediate race track since he finished 31st at Darlington back in May.
However, he still sits 25 points above the cut-line in sixth place in the points standings. Kansas is coming up this weekend, which is a track that he finished eighth at in the spring, and one more good race puts him in a good position heading into Bristol. This was just one off-night, and there is no reason to think this will be a pattern.
An eighth-place qualifying run only led to two stage points, but, Buescher kept his nose clean on Sunday night. In the end, he finished a solid third as he held off William Byron. Not only had Buescher won three of the last five races heading into the Playoffs, but they all came on very different race tracks, which helped him for some of the elimination races at places like Bristol and the Charlotte Roval.
However, a third place at an intermediate gives him some confidence for the other intermediate tracks in the Playoffs, of which there are five. The 17 team is firing on all cylinders, and they have a legitimate shot at winning the Cup Series Championship.
Christopher Bell’s race on Sunday was like a snowball. A pit crew miscue on the first pit stop set him back some, but contact with the wall put him further behind. From there, he was playing catch-up, and, it all started because of a pit road mistake.
The microscope is squarely on the 20 pit crew because of the swap with Ty Gibbs’ pit crew, but, Sunday was not all on them. It is also only one race, and Bell is still above the cut line. However, if these mistakes continue, and the moments get bigger, then the team may warrant some scrutiny.
Despite a good qualifying run, Michael McDowell was a non-factor on Sunday night. He scored no stage points, and he finished 32nd, the lowest of all Playoff drivers, after being involved in a late crash. This left him in 16th place 19 points below the cut-line.
McDowell and Front Row Motorsports have struggled on intermediates this season with only one top-10 finish coming at Gateway. Another intermediate follows in Kansas, and Bristol is the final track of the first round, where McDowell has never finished better than 10th. He is behind, and the tracks coming up do not favor him.
Kevin Harvick was a race-win contender before an untimely caution caused him to be penalized for pitting while pit road was closed. Before then, it looked like it might be his night. Now, how far can this momentum carry?
Harvick has shown flashes at various times this season, but he has failed to win a race. His best finish came at Darlington in the spring where he finished second. This could have been a flash-in-the-pan performance or it could be the start of a great run. Either way, it is only one race, and, the performance of SHR makes it tough to put Harvick in a Championship winning position.
After sneaking his way into the Playoffs at Daytona, Bubba Wallace quietly brought home a seventh-place finish at Darlington. Given the fact that he had no Playoff points heading into the Playoffs, many pegged Wallace as a driver who would not make it out of round one. He currently sits in 13th place, one point below the cut-line.
Coming up, Wallace has Kansas, where he won last year. He also has Talladega in round two, where he won in 2021. He is not a favorite by any means, but, things are lining up to where there is a path for Wallace to make a deep Playoff run. A solid run at Darlington only solidifies his confidence.
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Time will tell how these Playoff storylines work out. Which overreactions will come out of the race at Kansas this weekend?
Garrett Mitchell, better known by his online persona Cleetus McFarland, says his 2026 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series schedule isn’t set in stone, something the YouTube star explained to Dale Earnhardt Jr on the latest episode of The Dale Jr Download.
One of the biggest surprises in recent NASCAR news is that YouTube star Cleetus McFarland, whose real name is Garrett Mitchell, will make his NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series debut next month at Rockingham Speedway.
Mitchell, who has just won a NASCAR National Series start to his name, will make this start with Richard Childress Racing in their No. 33 car as part of a part-time development contract that will see him make starts in 2026 and 2027.
Per Mitchell, his contract will cover three races per season, though he hinted it could be more in a Facebook post. Nonetheless, fans are eagerly awaiting an official schedule of what other tracks Mitchell and RCR will tackle in 2026.
Unfortunately, fans will have to wait a little longer for this schedule, as the 30-year-old Floridian explained during a recent interview with Dale Earnhardt Jr, his 2026 schedule is still up in the air a month ahead of his first race.
During an interview on the latest episode of the Dale Jr Download, Mitchell told Earnhardt that while he plans to race the superspeedways after Rockingham, with his sights set on Talladega’s April 25 or October 24 race weekend, the decision lies in the hands of NASCAR.
“NASCAR said I cannot run Talladega unless I go to Rockingham first and do well,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell then clarified that while he will have a rookie test for Rockingham, the race at Rockingham will determine his eligibility to race at Talladega.
What’s Happening? YouTube star-turned-NASCAR driver Garrett Mitchell, best known by his online persona Cleetus McFarland, has signed a part-time deal to…
Mitchell, who has two ARCA starts at Daytona and one at Talladega, has already taken a rookie test this season at Rockingham for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.
Despite a minor crash during this test, Mitchell was cleared to race in the season-opening race at Daytona, crashing himself in a single truck spin five laps into the race, after a valiant qualifying effort.
Even with the barrier of Rockingham in the way, fans are already somewhat concerned about McFarland’s skills, given the result of his short time behind the wheel of a truck.
During this episode of The DJD, Mitchell expressed his intentions to work his way up the ladder and learn, but with the caveat that if an opportunity presents itself to him, he will take it, using the Daytona 500 and the NASCAR Cup Series as a metaphorical example.
“I don’t want to drive a Cup car right now. But, brother, if someone calls me and says, ‘We got a spot in a Cup car in the Daytona 500?’ I mean, what am I supposed to do?” — Cleetus McFarland
Despite his doubters, with the support of RCR and their developmental tools, Mitchell seems confident about the opportunity, already getting in some sim time with RCR.
Either way, no matter how much support he has in his corner, Mitchell is diving in headfirst once again with this opportunity.
What’s Happening? Despite his internet fame, Garrett Mitchell, by his screen name Cleetus McFarland, has recently taken to stock car racing…
What do you think about this? Let us know your opinion on Discord or X. Don’t forget that you can also follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.
Lionel has officially opened pre-orders for Garrett Mitchell’s (better known as Cleetus McFarland) first-ever NASCAR diecast.
What do you think about this? Let us know your opinion on Discord or X. Don’t forget that you can also follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.
YouTube star-turned-NASCAR driver Garrett Mitchell, best known by his online persona Cleetus McFarland, has signed a part-time deal to race with Richard Childress Racing in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series for the next two seasons.
UPDATE 3:00 PM EST: Per RCR Mitchell will make his debut at Rockingham Speedway on April 4.
What’s Happening? Despite his internet fame, Garrett Mitchell, by his screen name Cleetus McFarland, has recently taken to stock car racing…
What do you think about this? Let us know your opinion on Discord or X. Don’t forget that you can also follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.
