Frankie Muniz was released from Daytona International Speedway’s infield care center after a violent multi-car crash during Friday’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season opener.
The 40-year-old former ‘Malcolm in the Middle’ star, who has committed full-time to competitive stock car racing, was running in the main draft when a chain-reaction collision triggered an inescapable pileup ahead of him on the tri-oval. With nowhere to maneuver on the high-banked turns, Muniz sustained heavy front-end and side impact as his truck was collected by spinning machinery, bringing his run to an abrupt halt against the outside retaining wall.
Emergency track safety crews responded to Muniz’s vehicle under standard NASCAR protocol for high-impact telemetry readings, extracting him from the cockpit before transporting him by ambulance to the track’s infield care center. Medical personnel attended to him on the track apron before loading him on a stretcher into the infield ambulance.
Shortly after arriving, medical officials and team representatives confirmed that Muniz was conscious, alert, and communicating with medical personnel. After undergoing concussion protocol and full musculoskeletal checks, Muniz was medically cleared and officially released without any life-threatening injuries, though noticeably sore from the brutal G-forces of the high-speed impact.
The Daytona wreck marks the second major medical scare for Muniz since making the leap to NASCAR’s national touring ranks. During the Craftsman Truck Series championship race at Phoenix Raceway in November 2024, Muniz was collected in another inescapable chain-reaction collision after William Sawalich spun out, heavily damaging his No. 22 Ford and leaving the actor-driver visibly limping as safety crews loaded him onto an ambulance stretcher.
That hard hit sent him directly to the track’s infield care center for evaluation, but he was ultimately cleared of fractures and structural damage, recovering from severe bruising before returning to the grid for this season’s superspeedway opener.
Muniz has steadily climbed through the stock car ranks, transitioning from late-model events to ARCA Menards competition before stepping up to NASCAR’s premier national touring divisions. Despite the harrowing hits, the actor has repeatedly affirmed that surviving the high-risk sport is part of earning respect behind the wheel.