Laprade Showcases Podium Speed In Pro Truck Debut

Matthew Laprade in action Saturday at Auburndale Speedway. (Dennis Burgeson photo)

AUBURNDALE, Fla. – Matthew Laprade showed both promise and speed in his Pro Truck debut Saturday at Auburndale Speedway, driving from 12th to third on-track before a non-performance related issue with a clutch part led to an unfortunate technical disqualification.

Laprade qualified 12th in a stacked 20-truck field at the quarter-mile oval, and ultimately started on the outside of the sixth row for the 50-lap feature, the longest race of his career to date.

A mid-race green flag run allowed Laprade to methodically work his way forward to seventh place, before a spate of cautions in the later stages led to a series of restarts for the 12-year-old racer to battle through.

The final restart of the feature came with six laps left, when a stack-up in front of him allowed Laprade to dart to the apron amid a four-wide scramble for position among the frontrunners.

When the chaos cleared, Laprade found himself in podium position, and drove away in the final laps to cross the finish line third in a banner showing.

“I definitely didn’t expect to be standing on the frontstretch in my first-ever race in a Pro Truck,” Laprade admitted. “It was way beyond any of my goals or expectations going into the weekend, that’s for sure.

“It’s such a different animal than driving the Legend car, because I had to learn the width of the truck and understand how much space I had from where I was on track to the other drivers I was racing against. It was hard at the beginning, but I felt like I figured out a lot of the things I needed to by the end of the race and really learned a lot over the 50 laps. It was a ton of fun and I can’t wait for the next one.”

Though Laprade’s finish was later disqualified for a clutch part that was slightly underweight, but served no competitive advantage, his team saw the positives and gains out of his first step into a new discipline.

“It’s unfortunate that we didn’t make it past tech, but the growth Matthew showed throughout the race was exactly what we hoped for going into this first Pro Truck race,” said Damon Laprade, Matthew’s father. “He not only kept his truck clean, but he also raced hard against some top drivers in the class and earned respect throughout the race, particularly toward the end as he worked his way toward the front of the field.

“We’re looking forward to continuing his development in the Pro Trucks with Daniel [Webster, owner] and everyone at Right Foot Down Motorsports as we finish out this season and look toward next year.”

Laprade would like to thank marketing partners Wade Tractor & Equipment, Adrenalin Powersports, Synergy SpeedLab, Race Face Brand Development, and the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation for their support of his racing efforts.

He’ll return to the track Saturday, Aug. 31 with his Legend car at Cordele (Ga.) Motor Speedway in the Young Lions division. It’s part of a packed day of racing at the three-eighths-mile oval that includes a 100-lap pro late model race and a 55-lap Crown Vic car special event.

About Matthew Laprade

Matthew Laprade is a 12-year-old Legend car and Pro Truck racer from New Smyrna Beach, Fla., who is competing at Cordele (Ga.) Motor Speedway this season in the Young Lions division, as well as in the Cook Out Summer Shootout Series at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway and the Thursday Thunder Series at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway. He drives for Right Foot Down Motorsports in the Pro Truck category.

Laprade began his driving career at six years old in dirt go-karts, now having raced for half his life. He shocked the karting world in 2019 during his rookie season by winning the Vega Florida State Championship in the Rookie Division.

Invited to the nationals as a result, Laprade went on to capture the Vega National Championship that season in the Rookie Division, cementing his place as a young racer with prodigious talent.

Laprade’s second major championship came in 2021, when he claimed the Florida Dirt Championship Series title in the Junior 1 division, and he also added a victory in the prestigious World 100 karting event in Junior 1 that season as well.

After racing Bandolero cars for back-to-back seasons in 2022 and ’23, highlighted by a third-place finish in the Bandolero Nationals at Charlotte Motor Speedway in his sophomore Bandolero season, Laprade made the move to Legend cars for 2024. His Winter Nationals mini-series championship at Citrus County Speedway came on the strength of five race wins in five days from Feb. 12-16.

Laprade’s summer stretch was highlighted by a top-five finish during round nine of the Summer Shootout, as well as a ninth-place finish in the Thursday Thunder Young Lions standings.

Away from the racetrack, Laprade’s competitive interests include golfing and fishing, and he golfed rounds with the PGA Junior League this year during downtime from his racing schedule. He is also a supporter of the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation’s efforts to fight pediatric cancer.

A new website for Laprade is in development. In the meantime, fans can visit https://www.synergyspeedlab.com/m18 or follow Matthew Laprade Racing on Facebook to keep up with his racing endeavors.