Matthew Laprade Joins Race Face Brand Development

Race Face Brand Development has welcomed Matthew Laprade as its newest branded driver.

NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. – Twelve-year-old Legend car racer Matthew Laprade has become the newest addition to the Race Face Brand Development roster of drivers.

Laprade, from New Smyrna Beach, Fla., is in the midst of his first year of Legend car racing, competing in the Young Lions division.

He competed in both the Cook Out Summer Shootout Series at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway and the Thursday Thunder Series at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway this season among his premier events to date. Laprade also captured the Charger division championship in the Legends Winter Nationals at Florida’s Citrus County Speedway in February in a quick rise to prominence.

Laprade joins a roster of Race Face drivers which includes NASCAR Xfinity Series winner and ARCA Menards Series champion Jesse Love, Xfinity Series regulars Sheldon Creed and Anthony Alfredo, and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series young gun Kaden Honeycutt.

“Thank you to Rod [Wortham], Carol [Wortham], and everyone at Race Face for welcoming our family into their platform and being willing to help me grow as a person and a driver,” said Laprade. “I’m excited to work with them and learn from all the other Race Face drivers, and I believe the things I have the opportunity to learn here will only help me progress over the next few years.”

Race Face Brand Development is a full-service branding and development program, which works with young racecar drivers between the ages of five and 25 that have dreams and goals of reaching the top levels in racing.

Founder and CEO Rod Wortham is excited to welcome Laprade to the Race Face family as the second Legend car driver the company is working with at the grassroots level.

“This continues to be an exciting season for Race Face Brand Development as an organization and we are glad to add Matthew Laprade to our growing lineup,” said Wortham. “We are looking forward to seeing him grow both on and off the racetrack as he learns from our experienced team of motorsports professionals. Adding to our Legend car and short track presence in the Southeast allows Race Face to continue assisting young drivers in their racing goals, as well as furthers our mission of growing the sport as a whole.”

Laprade is set to make his Pro Truck debut on Saturday, Aug. 24 at Auburndale (Fla.) Speedway with Right Foot Down Motorsports, owned by Daniel Webster. It marks the youngster’s first foray into full-size cars as he chases a dream of racing in NASCAR.

For more information on Race Face Brand Development, including details on how to join the program, visit https://www.racefacebranddevelopment.com.

About Matthew Laprade

Matthew Laprade is a 12-year-old Legend car 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.

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.