No. 38 Ford Mustang Dark Horse to Showcase Mike Avila’s New Book
MOORESVILLE, N.C. (June 23, 2026) – Michael Roberts Construction (MRC) will return with Zane Smith and the No. 38 Ford Mustang Dark Horse team at Sonoma Raceway on June 28th, with a special scheme celebrating a new book written by the company’s founder and chief executive officer, Mike Avila, titled NOT TODAY: The Secret to Never Giving Up.
Avila has been a longtime supporter of Smith, helping kick-start the Huntington Beach native’s career and served as the primary partner on his NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series championship-winning truck at Phoenix Raceway, in 2022. Avila built a thriving construction business, MRC, and is a devoted mentor, coach, and family man, whose greatest pride lies not in his trophies, but in the lives, he has helped transform.
To go with his successful business ventures, Avila is one of the most decorated water ski racers in history. Over a career spanning multiple decades, he accumulated 27 National Championships, 31 High Point Championships, five World Team Championships and eight consecutive Marathon Series Championships, during the most competitive era in the sport’s history.
In 2002, Avila became the first racing-only athlete ever inducted into the Water Ski Hall of Fame, a distinction achieved despite suffering three separate career-ending injuries, including breaking his neck three times and experiencing paralysis. Each time that he experienced setbacks, he returned to competition and continued to win.
“Mike’s story is one that everyone needs to hear,” said Smith. “He wasn’t going to let his accident define who he was, and, by taking it one day at a time, he overcame something that most people couldn’t. He helped kick-start my career, too, and has always been someone that I can lean on. Hopefully, I can repay him with a solid run in Sonoma.”
NOT TODAY: The Secret to Never Giving Up is not a sports memoir, it is a manual for the human condition.The premise is simple – you do not have to win forever; you only have to win today. Avila applies this across every arena in which people break down – addiction, grief, career failure, and broken relationships. After his 1991 crash, he refused prescription painkillers, despite having chronic pain. “I preferred to take it one day at a time,” said Avila. “Not today. I’m not going to rely on drugs today.”
Fans can order NOT TODAY: The Secret to Never Giving Up on Amazon in eBook, paperback and hardback. The No. 38 MRC / NOT TODAY: The Secret to Never Giving Up Ford Mustang Dark Horse will be in action at Sonoma Raceway on Sunday, June 28th, at 3:30pm ET, on TNT Sports.
ABOUT MICHAEL ROBERTS CONSTRUCTION, INC.
MRC (Michael Roberts Construction, Inc.) is one of Northern California’s preeminent commercial contractors with expertise in private and public general construction projects from new, ground up buildings to commercial building tenant improvements and renovating existing facilities in all building categories. For more information, visit https://mrcbuilt.com/.
ABOUT FRONT ROW MOTORSPORTS
Front Row Motorsports (FRM) is a winning organization competing in the NASCAR Cup Series and the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. Founded in 2004 by entrepreneur Bob Jenkins, FRM has earned top honors including a 2021 Daytona 500 victory and the 2022 CRAFTSMAN Truck Series championship. Based in Mooresville, N.C., FRM fields the No. 4, No. 34, and No. 38 entries in the NASCAR Cup Series, along with the No. 34 and No. 38 teams in the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. For more information, visit teamfrm.com and follow Front Row Motorsports on social media — X: @Team_FRM, Instagram: @teamfrm, Tik Tok: @Team_FRM, YouTube: @FrontRowNASCAR, and Facebook: facebook.com/FrontRowMotorsports.
