Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images

Cleetus McFarland Gets Bad News Regarding His NASCAR Future

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Thomas Carelli | Last updated Apr 7, 2026 8:00 PM ET

NASCAR came down today with a notice to Cleetus McFarland that he will not be permitted to race the O'Reilly Auto Parts Series at Talladega Superspeedway. The race was set to take place later this month, but NASCAR is holding McFarland to racing only on short tracks in the series. As of now, McFarland is limited to the Truck Series and ARCA to gain more behind-the-windshield experience.

McFarland ran his debut race in the NOAPS this past weekend at Rockingham. The result shows that McFarland finished the race, but not cleanly. McFarland spun out multiple times, much of his own doing. He endured a speeding penalty in the process and finished a mere 32nd. It is quite clear that he is a sitting duck on the track, not quite ready for the bigger series.

The best example of this all is where McFarland also ran the ARCA East race at Rockingham. In that car, McFarland finished very strongly, placing 4th. In ARCA, he can compete... not so much in the NOAPS.

Richard Childress Racing had signed McFarland to a multi-race deal this season, but the risks were evident. If McFarland proved to be more of a risk than a reward to NASCAR itself, they could limit his entries. The YouTube star may very well take to a short-track setting, but nothing is set in stone, given the latest announcement.

Since McFarland is limited to short tracks, his next appearance in the O'Reilly Series may have to wait some time. The next time the series hits a short track, after this weekend, will be at Iowa Speedway on August 8, 4 months from now.

Cleetus McFarland Boosts NASCAR Viewership

Cleetus McFarland shakes hands with guests before the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series at Rockingham Speedway. (Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images)Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images

The clear benefit of McFarland is increased viewership and a growing fanbase. When he ran at Daytona, the views were up significantly. Now, McFarland ran the O'Reilly race at Rockingham and, viola, viewership was up over 10% compared to last year.

There is a fine line between growing viewership and keeping it safe on track. Clearly, McFarland is off the pace. It is better for everyone involved if McFarland drops down in competition, thus giving him a better chance to genuinely compete in the top-10 and keeping on-track racing safe for everyone.

This past weekend, Richard Childress, VP, and Danny Lawrence hinted at this reality. "I would not be surprised if NASCAR didn't want us to run another race," Lawrence stated to the media. "Everything happens so fast there (Talladega) that we all want to be prepared when we do take him there." NASCAR rained down what Lawrence expected, telling McFarland that he would be limited to Trucks and ARCA for the time being.

McFarland posted the news on Facebook, stating, "It's a kick in the nuts, but not as much of a letdown as it seems." "I just need to get out there more and do as much learning as possible," says McFarland. "Back to the drawing board — see you soon." In due time, McFarland can run with the big boys, but there are levels to the game of NASCAR.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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