Michael Arnett, NASCAR racer, dies at 52: ‘Sad to see him go’

Michael Annett, a past NASCAR winner at Talladega and Daytona, has died at age 39.

JR Motorsports announced Annett’s death on Friday.

NASCAR.com reports the Des Moines, Iowa native made 436 combined starts across NASCAR’s three national touring series, with 321 in the Xfinity Series.

In 2019, he took the series’ season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway in the No. 1 JRM Chevrolet for his first and only win at the national level.

He retired in 2021 after a stress fracture kept him out for parts of the season.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the entire Annett family with the passing of our friend Michael Annett,” JR Motorsports shared in a post on X.

“Michael was a key member of JRM from 2017 until he retired in 2021 and was an important part in turning us into the four-car organization we remain today.”

Annett made his debut in 2008 before going full-time in 2009, entering with Germain Racing before transitioning to Rusty Wallace Racing and Richard Petty Motorsports.

He spent three years at the sport’s top level in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving for Turner Scott Motorsports from 2014 through 2016 and making 106 starts across those three seasons. He then joined JRM in 2017.

Annett was also a two-time winner in the ARCA Menards Series, with a Talladega Superspeedway victory in 2007 before winning the 2008 series opener at Daytona.

In a statement, NASCAR called him a “respected competitor whose determination, professionalism, and positive spirit were felt by everyone in the garage.”

“Throughout his career, he represented our sport with integrity and the passion of a true racer,” NASCAR’s statement said.

Brad Keselowski paid tribute to Annett on social media after his death.

“Michael was an up and comer at the same time I was and he was looking really good. In the end, Life took us different paths and all of us who knew him and the talent he had are sad to see him go, but glad he is no longer suffering,” he wrote.