A former contestant from “Dancing with the Stars” got into an ugly crash in the middle of a racing event. Season 25 DWTS contestant Frankie Muniz will fully recover, according to TMZ on November 9, but the accident looked bad.
The crash happened while Muniz was participating in a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Championship Race, TMZ reported. After the crash, Muniz was seen on camera limping toward an ambulance.
Frankie Muniz Said the Incident Was ‘Unfortunate’
According to TMZ, the accident happened in Phoenix, Arizona. The race and crash took place on November 8.
While Muniz looked roughed up and limped to the ambulance after the multi-car crash, he was able to speak with reporters a short time later.
“Unfortunate. I got a good opportunity to run with some guys, I made some passes,” Muniz told the press.
He continued, “Lost a few spots on restarts, then went back out and passed them again.” TMZ indicated that the accident happened at that point.
Racing journalist Peter Stratta shared the video clip of Muniz speaking to the press via X, formerly Twitter.
Despite the unfortunate ending, Muniz said it was a good experience for him to learn how to get by people, as he hadn’t had much of a chance to do that before.
At the time of the crash, Muniz found he had “Nowhere I could go” to avoid the crash. The crash ended his race day, but he noted he was “learning a lot.”
Muniz added he was “excited for next season.”
Trying NASCAR Was a ‘Dream’ of Muniz’s Forever
In 2006, Muniz stepped away from acting to try professional race car driving, his Muniz Racing website notes. He raced consistently for several years, until 2009 when an injury pushed him out of racing.
After a 14-year absence from racing, Muniz returned to the track. He talked to People about the opportunity on October 22.
“I don’t want to say it’s a long time coming, but this has been a dream of mine for forever,” he shared.
The former “Malcolm in the Middle” star is set to be a full-time driver during the 2025 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season.
Muniz explained, “I started with doing the open wheel route. I thought I was going to go IndyCar, kind of the Formula 1 route, but I always had in the back of my mind that I wanted to try NASCAR.”
He continued, “I wanted to do it. I grew up watching NASCAR. I was a huge fan, but it’s not something I necessarily thought that I’d ever get the opportunity to do.”
“I want people to know that I’ve literally dedicated my life to this…I love it,” Muniz noted.
He added, “When I’m not in the race car, I’m thinking about being in the race car. I’m training, I’m in the simulator at Ford…I’m working with my engineers and my crew chiefs and the team and doing everything I can.”
Muniz expressed he hasn’t permanently closed the door on acting. However, for now, he’s “focusing on being a race car driver.” He noted, “I hope to just prove to people that I can do both.”
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DWTS Alum Limps to Ambulance After Multi-Vehicle Crash