Hours after Frankie Muniz made his much-anticipated return to the small screen in Malcom in the Middle: Life's Still Unfair, an unexpected tragedy occurred.
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The former child actor crashed his NASCAR truck, which prominently featured a Malcolm in the Middle theme, during a race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Is the "Malcom in the Middle" Star OK?
Muniz is a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series racer on Team Reaume. He began his racing career in 2004 and returned to the sport full-time this year.
Then, on Friday, April 10, he crashed his Ford F-150. It also took out racers Tyler Reif and Timmy Hill during the Tennessee Army National Guard 250.
According to a report from Entertainment Weekly, neither Muniz nor his fellow drivers suffered any serious injuries. However, the incident not only damaged the actor's truck but also took him out of the race. He received a DNF (Do Not Finish) in the final results.
Tyler Reif Was "Yelling" at Frankie Muniz
Muniz and Reif also reportedly got into an argument after the crash. Muniz said that Reif called him a "lapper."
"I think [Reif] just maybe got impatient," said Muniz. "I don't know... I'm fighting. I belong on that racetrack just as much as he does, just as much as the leaders do. And I'm not going to back down on that."
He added, "I haven't seen a replay, but based on what I felt, I went to the middle of the track. I didn't track all the way out to show that I was going to go back to the bottom. And next thing I know, I'm destroying a truck."
The irony of the crash happening on the same day as the return of Malcom in the Middle was not lost on Muniz.
He said, "Hopefully it got TV time, you know what I mean? Hopefully, people are going to watch the Malcolm in the Middle reboot right after this race!"
One notable Malcolm in the Middle fan was Dale Earnhardt Sr. Muniz recounted that he was among the last people Earnhardt spoke to before his fatal crash in 2001.
Muniz shared, "He was extremely friendly to me, and I remember he said, 'I have to say thank you to you... because your show has brought me and my daughter closer together.' He's like, 'It's something that we turn on Sunday nights, and we watch together.'"
He then added, "Another thing he told me was, you know, 'Enjoy it, enjoy the run, because you never know when it's gonna end.'"
