Where else are you going to see an early 2000s sitcom star, an extreme sports athlete often compared to Evel Knievel, a NASCAR Hall of Famer who has been away for almost a decade, and a popular YouTuber who hates sleeves battle each other at speeds approaching 200mph? Only this Friday the 13th on FOX Sports 1, when the 2026 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS) season officially gets underway.
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Norm Benning, Toni Breidinger, Bryan Dauzat, Greg Van Alst, Timmy Hill, Tyler Tomassi, Justin Carroll).
The NCTS is the third level of NASCAR’s national divisions, and often its wildest as teenagers face-off against veteran champions in machines that don’t mind getting muscled around.
And while the Daytona 500 is of course the crown jewel event of the week, there’s a very specific reason why you shouldn’t miss the Truck race either — well, several reasons.
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Just take a look at the drivers competing in this race, and you’ll understand why.
Ram is back…and so is Smoke
Timothy ‘Mini’ Tyrrell, No. 14 Kaulig Racing Ram
Timothy ‘Mini’ Tyrrell, No. 14 Kaulig Racing Ram
First and foremost, the event will feature the long-awaited return of Ram to the Truck Series as Kaulig Racing brings a five-truck fleet to Daytona. The iconic brand has been absent from the grid since 2013! Their drivers include reigning ARCA champion Brenden ‘Butterbean’ Queen, who will be competing in a Truck race at a superspeedway for the very first time. Ram also has Mini Tyrrell, a promising racer but one who has never done anything like this before. He’s here after winning a reality show competition against 14 other racers, securing a full-time ride with Kaulig as the prize.
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And these two will have several teammates, including a name known by even the most casual NASCAR viewers – Tony Stewart. And while ‘Smoke’ hasn’t competed in NASCAR since 2018, his last Truck start came almost twenty years ago in 2005, he is here to win. Did we mention he is the winningest driver in Daytona history not named Earnhardt?
Tony Stewart, No. 25 Kaulig Racing Ram
Tony Stewart, No. 25 Kaulig Racing Ram
A TV star, a YouTuber and an extreme sports athlete
It gets wilder, so keep reading. Frankie Muniz is driving the No. 33, embarking on his second full-time season as a Truck racer. The ‘Malcolm in the Middle’ star earned his career-best finish in this race one year ago, placing tenth. If he wants to best that effort, he’ll have to face the drivers we mentioned, but also wild men like Travis Pastrana and Cleetus McFarland.
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It is difficult to properly encapsulate Pastrana, who is a stuntman, an extreme sports star, and X-Games legend whose list of death-defying achievements are just as long as his professional racing resume. He is the only person who can say they won nearly a dozen X-Games gold medals, started the Daytona 500, holds the record for the longest jump ever recorded in a rally car, and stepped out of a airplane without wearing a parachute.
And yet, Pastrana’s crazy might be eclipsed by teammate Cleetus McFarland, whose real name is Garrett Mitchell. He has 4.6 million subscribers on YouTube, and over two billion views on his channel — and he will tear the sleeves off every shirt he comes across, as his teammate Pastrana found out in the Media Center earlier this week. Both Mitchell and Pastrana are high-energy personalities, and you never know what they’re going to do or say next. He’s also racing in honor of NASCAR legend Greg Biffle, a close friend and racing mentor who died in a tragic plane crash during the off-season.
Cleetus McFarland rips the sleeves off Travis Pastrana’s shirt
Cleetus McFarland rips the sleeves off Travis Pastrana’s shirt
This race will feature countless rookies, but also two former Daytona 500 champions as Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (2023) and Michael McDowell (2021) join the fray. They aren’t the only active Cup drivers in the field either, as John-Hunter Nemechek and Carson Hocevar are here as well. Hocevar is one of the most aggressive drivers in NASCAR today, earning him the moniker ‘Hurricane’ Hocevar, and this will begin a weekend where the rising star plans to complete triple-duty. No other driver is attempting that over the next few days.
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The youngest driver in the field is 19 years old (Gio Ruggiero), and the oldest is 54 (Stewart).
Carson Hocevar, Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Carson Hocevar, Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
here’s Stewart Friesen, who is back for the first time after suffering severe injuries in a dirt modified crash last summer, and he’s a proven winner in Trucks. And Corey LaJoie, looking for redemption after missing out on the Daytona 500 field in a last-lap crash during his qualifying race. He’s also driving for a team (Henderson Motorsports) searching for their own redemption, as they won this Truck race one year ago before being disqualified in post-race inspection.
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This series has factory-backed super teams and intricate development programs, but it also has independent racers driving for family-owned teams with three full-time employees.
So, tune in and watch worlds clash around the high banks of Daytona International Speedway on Friday the 13th, under the lights, in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.
Read Also:
Official starting lineup for the 2026 Daytona 500
Anthony Alfredo disqualified, removed from Daytona 500 field
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Is NASCAR going to let Garrett Mitchell be Cleetus McFarland?
Tony Stewart returns to NASCAR in rare media form
Ram: Race for The Seat winner revealed, earning Kaulig NASCAR Truck ride
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