Frankie Muniz tears up in emotional interview after winning GT4 America race

Frankie Muniz couldn't conceal his emotions as he celebrated his triumph at the GT4 America Series alongside Tyler Stone.

The Malcolm in the Middle star, 40, fought back tears as he and his teammate roared to victory behind the wheel of their Ford Mustang GT4 in the Am class in Race 1 on Friday (28 August).

Describing their win at Road America as 'unbelievable', the joy he felt was written all over his face as he gave an impassioned interview about how much it meant to him.

Muniz was seen celebrating on the sidelines as he watched Stone zoom to victory and cross the finish line just half-a-second ahead of the driver who was hot on his heels.

The pair were first place in the Am class and came 17th overall in the multi-class race, and according to Muniz, the victory couldn't have come at a better time for him.

The child star excitedly embraced members of his crew as they watched Stone secure their win, before he was then overcome by emotion.

While wiping tears from his face, Muniz said: "I'm emotional because I've honestly had two of the worst weeks of my entire life, to be honest. I came here, really low.

"Had a good day yesterday, and felt really good today...so to get this win is just...thank you, God, my team, Ford. This is unbelievable.

"I feel so incredible. I'm so excited for Tyler, he drove so good! This is amazing."

It's safe to say that fans tuning into the action unfolding at the GT4 America Series thought Muniz was a very deserving winner, as one social media said: "That's a long time coming for Frankie, good to see."

Another wrote: "Hell yeah! Way to go Frankie. Thats huge. Keep it up!"

And a third added: "Very happy for him. He deserves it."

Muniz, who also competes in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, also shared a post on Instagram on Friday explaining he was on cloud nine after his and Stone's success.

While sharing footage of the celebration that unfolded as his fellow driver crossed the finish line - which was aptly accompanied by the Queen hit 'We Are The Champions' - he wrote: "Are you kidding me!?!?

"We won at Road America in our @fordracing Mustang GT4 car! I've been pretty low these past two weeks, but God is good and gave us this win right when I could use it most!!

"I couldn't be more proud of my teammate @tstonem3 and my team @techsport_racing for being absolutely incredible all weekend," the two-time Golden Globe nominee said.

"This Mustang was a rocketship! Let's get another win tomorrow!"

Stone was just as complimentary about his teammate and shared a post to mark the 'great day' they had at the GT4 America Series in Wisconsin.

In a post shared to social media, he said: "@frankiemuniz4 drove an incredible first stint and put us in position to fight up front, and after falling back at the beginning of the second stint, we were able to fight back for the win.

"We are truly blessed and grateful to be teammates in this position. Thank you to @techsport_racing and crew for all the work they put in to get us ready for the green flag and a big thanks to @fordracing for an excellent race car, for all the support this year and for this incredible opportunity!"

Muniz's drastic career change

Muniz embarked on his career as an open-wheel driver after stepping away from acting in wake of his ridiculously successful run as the star of Malcolm in the Middle.

Despite being considered 'one of Hollywood's most bankable teens' at the time, he decided to leave Hollywood to concentrate on his true passion.

During an appearance on Steve-O's Wild Ride! podcast in 2021, the former actor explained: "When Malcolm ended, I got signed to BMW to race cars. I said to my agents and manager, 'Look this is what I want to do. I'm not trying to just do it as a hobby, I want to be the best I can be'. Like anything, if you want to do something the best, you've got to put in the time, you need to get in the work.

"So I didn't think that it was humanly possible to continue acting or continue in the entertainment business while doing the racing thing.

"I'm so happy I went racing, I love every aspect of it and now it's becoming a part of my life again. But I look back and I go, 'Did I make a mistake leaving at the height of my career?'

"Like when I had hundreds of offers...I could have kept going non-stop, and I said, 'No, I don't want to'. Now I look back and I go, 'I wonder what my life would have been if I stayed'.

"I look back and I go, 'Thank goodness I left!' Because I appreciate life in general more, I've started taking more in and I look back at the success I had and go, 'That was really cool'."

Muniz said he was a 'much happier person' since he left Los Angeles for Phoenix, Arizona, and changed his career.

And as demonstrated on Friday, it seems that all of his hard work is paying off. Congrats, lads!