Frankie Muniz in NASCAR: What You Need To Know
What’s Happening? Actor-turned-NASCAR driver Frankie Muniz announced Tuesday that he is going full-time racing next season. Frankie has been racing in…
Lost in the shuffle of a rain-delayed Daytona 500 was a report that Dodge is making plans to return to NASCAR as soon as 2026. This would be through their Ram brand, a former longtime staple of the Craftsman Truck Series. So, which current Truck Series team is the best fit for a switch to this returning make?
NASCAR teams, at any level, switch manufacturers for a number of reasons. These teams could seek better engines, support, or even prospects racing under that OEM’s banner.
While the Truck Series utilizes a spec Ilmor engine, switching manufacturers can still impact a team. For example, when Kyle Busch Motorsports switched from Toyota to Chevrolet in 2023, the trucks remained mostly the same. However, Toyota talent Corey Heim found himself racing for Toyota’s new top team, TRICON Garage.
Dodge and RAM will not have any set prospects when and if they officially re-enter the sport; however, for some teams trying to grow their brand or even stand out, the support that a switch to RAM could alter their trajectory.
First, we need to eliminate those that would be flat-out unlikely to make such a change. This includes established programs, those with developmental ties, and those tied to OEMs through other series.
For example, TRICON Garage has ties to Toyota’s developmental ladder, as it currently fields four full-time rides for the brand’s prospects. Losing top drivers could be detrimental to a team making a switch.
Spire Motorsports and Front Row Motorsports both have ties to their OEMs through their Cup Series programs. Due to their Cup Series program needs, these teams would not be likely to make such a change.
Other teams, while not tied to OEMs through either developmental or other series, such as Niece Motorsports, have longtime ties to their OEM, suggesting they could stay in place.
Since the late 2010s, Reaume Brother Racing has grown from a single-truck team floating OEMs into a stable three-car organization. Though they currently enter Fords, they have a history of switching brands. For example, in 2022, the team switched from Chevrolet to Toyota, almost race to race.
While joining RAM would not make a major difference for the team, joining a new OEM would provide the team with notoriety as a staple team of RAM’s new era in NASCAR.
However, this season, the brand and Ford took another step in their relationship with RBR signing actor-turned-driver Frankie Muniz to race full-time for the team. Muniz, who has a deep relationship with Ford, may not be a top prospect in NASCAR, yet he brings necessary attention and sponsorship to the team.
What’s Happening? Actor-turned-NASCAR driver Frankie Muniz announced Tuesday that he is going full-time racing next season. Frankie has been racing in…
When thinking of a team known for changing manufacturers in the Truck Series, Thorsport Racing stands out as a prime example. Since 2011, Duke Thorson’s team has switched from Chevrolet to Toyota, to Ford, back to Toyota, and ultimately back to Ford.
The team last made the switch in 2023, and while the spec Ilmor engines make these switches easier, their history of jumping OEMs led to some fans joking that Thorsport was a top candidate for Ram.
Though these are jokes, the team does not currently have any true ties to Ford’s developmental ladder as they enter three full-time veteran drivers. If RAM makes a return to NASCAR, it would be hard to write-off Thorsport as a candidate to make the switch.
McAnally-Hilgemann Racing is quickly rising through the ranks of the Truck Series. After a slow start, MHR is now one of the most consistent teams week in and week out. After a breakout 2023 season, the team, alongside Chevrolet prospect Christian Eckes, is coming off a dominant 2024 season in the Truck Series.
The team has mostly entered Chevrolets throughout its Truck Series tenures but entered Toyotas from 2018 to 2021. Notably, they have entered Dodge RAMs in the past, specifically twice in 2001 with driver Brendan Gaughan.
RAM would benefit more from a switch than MHR. The team is established as a top dog in the series, yet it is far from the top of a crowded Chevrolet entry list. While a switch would pose an interesting future for the team, the growth the team had with Chevrolet and drivers like Eckes and Daniel Dye should not be overlooked.
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On February 17, Ubisoft released a trailer that confirmed that NASCAR would be included in The Crew Motorfest’s next season update. Details were limited at the time, but in a press release issued today, Ubisoft revealed the full details of the update ahead of its March 4 launch.
Ubisoft says drafting will affect car speed and help save fuel, implying that drafting will be a huge factor in the game, at least with these cars. You can check out this and much more on Ubisoft’s official post linked below
Earlier this Tuesday, the official The Crew Motorfest account clarified confusion around the NASCAR bundles. The Crew Credit (CC) bundles only include cosmetic team liveries, not additional cars. The 3 base Next Gen cars (Ford Mustang Dark Horse, Toyota Camry XSE, and Chevrolet ZL1) are part of the free Season 9 update and can be purchased separately.
Mitch Rasmussen, NASCAR’s Senior Director of Interactive, said in the press release:
We’re excited to bring our iconic brand to life in The Crew Motorfest. This collaboration represents another important step in our strategy to bring NASCAR into the digital spaces and places where next generation fans spend their time, giving players new ways to interact with the culture and communities they love.
The content arrives as part of Year 3 Season 9 and is officially licensed by NASCAR. You can watch the first trailer and learn more in the article linked below
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Four road courses on the schedule, and somehow that’s enough to spark one of the biggest debates in the garage. After recent comments from Brad Keselowski questioning the business value of road racing, the conversation has picked up serious steam. Is NASCAR leaning too far into it, or is the current balance about right?
There are valid points on both sides, from sponsorship realities to fan traditions to competitive diversity. Some tracks have gained traction. Others have struggled. The question isn’t just whether road courses belong, but how many make sense within a 36-race season. It’s less about extremes and more about direction. And with future schedule changes always looming, this debate probably isn’t settled anytime soon.
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Corey Day’s run-in with Connor Zilisch at Circuit of the Americas became one of the most discussed incidents from Saturday’s race, even drawing a response from Denny Hamlin as well, who this week talked about his support for Zilisch.
During the race, Zilisch dealt with brake trouble on his No. 1 Chevrolet but worked his way forward from the rear of the field, advancing from P29 to P4 in the closing laps. With five laps remaining, he engaged in a battle with Hendrick Motorsports driver Corey Day as they exited Turn 2, holding the outside line. But as they contested the position, Day moved up behind him, contact occurred, and Zilisch spun off course to finish the race in P21.
After the contact, frustrated, Connor Zilisch initially referred to Day as an “absolute hack” on his radio, describing the clash as part of the latter’s racing pattern. But the JR Motorsports driver later tempered his comments, simply saying he expects an apology from the young Hendrick Motorsports driver.
Given that Zilisch declined to escalate the situation, on the latest episode of his Actions Detrimental podcast, Hamlin credited him for calmly managing his response after the race, saying,
“Zillich was smart about this. He in his interview, he’s like, “I looked over at him thinking, come on over here. Come apologize.” And he said he just looked at him with a stare like, I don’t know what it is with these guys. Why, Why can’t they… youth?”
However, he questioned Day’s failure to issue an immediate apology. In fact, he said he was “floored” by Corey Day’s reaction, which involved staring at a frustrated Zilisch rather than apologizing.
The No. 11 JGR driver also raised questions about how Hendrick Motorsports evaluates developing drivers. Organizations invest with the expectation of returns measured in wins and titles, but when a driver continues to make visible mistakes, fans and especially other drivers will start to scrutinize. Hamlin pointed to the balance between development and production, asking how long it would hold.
The COTA incident was not the first time Day’s racing antics were questioned. Last week, during the Atlanta race, Day was involved in a multi-car crash on lap five after attempting a three-wide move that resulted in contact with Ryan Sieg. The move triggered a chain reaction that collected several cars.
Sieg responded over team radio, questioning both the decision and Day’s presence in the series.
Hamlin argued that drivers are allowed to make mistakes as part of growth. At teams with front-running equipment and title ambitions, time frames are shorter. But he questioned whether Day faces a deadline by season’s end or whether the assessment extends into the following year.
In Day’s case, results have not offset the incidents that have drawn attention. Hamlin referenced Kyle Larson as an example, noting that aggressive driving can lead to contact as well as wins.
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