Frankie Muniz and Rette Jones Racing Head to Charlotte Ready to Retake ARCA Points Lead
CONCORD, N.C.: Make no mistake about it, Frankie Muniz has even surprised himself as a rookie in the ARCA Menards Series this season.
The driver of the No. 30 Rette Jones Racing Ford Mustang has busted out three top-10 finishes in the first four races of the season – consistency that propelled him into the ARCA Menards Series points lead following the race at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway in April.
Earlier this month, Muniz, despite posting an eighth-place finish at Kansas Speedway, lost the points lead to championship rival Jesse Love – but only by two points.
Set to make his Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway debut on Friday night, Muniz and his Rette Jones Racing team are focused on taking back control o the championship lead following the General Tire 150.
“I am ready to get back in the saddle,” said Muniz. “I am proud of our Rette Jones Racing team for overcoming the struggles that we had at Kansas. While I was bummed that we didn’t keep the points lead leaving Kansas, we are sure are determined to get it back at Charlotte on Friday night.
“I know this is an important race for Rette Jones Racing and even our manufacturer Ford to run well in the heart of NASCAR country – so I am looking forward to having a productive day on Friday and being a strong contender during the race on Friday night.”
To prepare himself for his first go-around with Charlotte’s 1.5-mile surface, the former Malcom in the Middle actor has recently spent some time in the Ford simulator – making laps around the Concord, N.C.-based track to speed up his learning curve ahead of practice on Friday morning.
“Charlotte is not the same as Kansas,” Muniz said with a smile. “It seems like a very abrasive track where handling will be crucial and tire wear conservation will be equally critical. Nothing beats actual track time, but I am thankful for the sim time and hope I can apply what I learned on Friday.”
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“It’s great to be representing the HairClub brand again,” said Muniz. “They were very instrumental in helping make my ARCA Menards Series debut successful both on and off the track. I am very blessed and thankful to have the opportunity to work with them again and try to put them in Victory Lane!”
Former ARCA championship-winning crew chief and co-owner Mark Rette was extremely impressed with Muniz’s performance in the first four races and look forward to seeing his attentiveness continue at Charlotte.
“Charlotte will be another learning curve for Frankie, but it’s a curve that I feel he can conquer pretty quick,” said Rette. “He has been putting in the work to prepare himself for the race this weekend – nothing different than he has done all year long.
“I think we were all a little bummed to lose the points lead – but it is still easily within our grasp and it is very early in the season. Still, Frankie is incredibly focused and he knows that if he just focuses on his craft behind the wheel, the points will follow.
“At the end of the day, we just want to have another successful race with a satisfying finish and prepare for this upcoming summer stretch.”
For the 2023 ARCA season, Rette Jones Racing will continue its longtime partnership with Ford Performance but has upgraded its fleet to include the Ford Mustang continuing this weekend in Charlotte.
Entering Charlotte, Muniz sits second in the ARCA Menards Series championship standings, two markers behind championship leader Jesse Love with 16 races remaining.
Rette Jones Racing stands a respectable fourth in the ARCA Menards Series championship owner standings.
Since 2023, Muniz has four ARCA Menards Series starts to his credit with a career-best finish of sixth at Phoenix Raceway in March 2023 and three top-10s overall. He also maintains an average finishing position of 8.5 in his inaugural year of stock car competition.
For more on Frankie Muniz please visit munizracing.com, like him on Facebook (FrankieMuniz4) and follow him on Instagram (@frankiemuniz4) and Twitter (@frankiemuniz).
For more on Rette Jones Racing, please visit RetteJonesRacing.com, like them on Facebook (Rette Jones Racing), or follow them on Instagram (@RetteJones30) and Twitter (@RetteJones30).
The General Tire 150 (100 laps | 150 miles) is the fifth of 20 races on the 2023 ARCA Menards Series schedule in the 71st consecutive ARCA season. Practice begins Friday, May 26 from 11:40 a.m. – 12:25 p.m. General Tire pole qualifying in a timed session will begin a short time later at 12:40 p.m. The race is set to take the green flag later in the day shortly after 6:00 p.m. ET. The event will be televised live on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) with the Motor Racing Network (MRN) and SiriusXM Satellite Radio (XM channel 391 | online channel 981) handling the radio waves. ARCARacing.com will also stream live timing and scoring throughout the entire weekend festivities.
About Rette Jones Racing:
Headquartered in Mooresville, North Carolina, Rette Jones Racing (RJR) was founded in 2015 with the intent of building a successful racing operation built around the fundamentals of hard work and a never-give-up attitude.
Owned by racers Terry Jones and Mark Rette, RJR plans to field a full-time entry in 2023 in the ARCA Menards Series, while also planning to field vehicles in the ARCA Menards Series East respectively.
The winning ARCA team also offers technical and setup intel as part of its technical alliance partnership program.
