Laprade Showcases Podium Speed In Pro Truck Debut

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.