2024 02 14 Volusia Dirtcar Lm Max Mclaughlin Paul Arch Photo (92)a
Max McLaughlin (Paul Arch photo)

McLaughlin Lands New Dirt Late Model Ride

SALISBURY, N.C. — Max McLaughlin starts the next chapter of his dirt late model racing career with this weekend’s Peach State Classic at Senoia Raceway.

Niece Motorsports, which fields a full-time NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series team, will return to dirt late model racing through a partnership with HWH Performance with McLaughlin as the driver.

Niece Motorsports is bringing its Dirt Super Late Model operation back in full force through a partnership with HWH Performance. The organization has signed Max McLaughlin as its primary driver starting this weekend in the
McLaughlin, son of former NASCAR winner, Mike McLaughlin, is a second-generation driver who hails from Mooresville, North Carolina. This year, he competed in his first full-time season in the World of Outlaws Case Construction Late Model Series, finishing second in the rookie-of-the-year chase.
Niece Motorsports has occasionally fielded entries in various late model races in the past, but next year, the team plans to enter several noteworthy events throughout the country. Rather than committing to one specific tour, the team will opt to chase after some of the most prestigious races on the calendar.
The NASCAR Truck Series team will enter its 10th year of competition in 2025, marking a significant milestone year for the company. 

Anchor partners Precision Vehicle Logistics and Mohawk Northeast will back McLaughlin’s efforts.

“This is something that Cody Efaw and I have been talking about trying to put together for quite some time now,” said McLaughlin. “I think it’s great to see this all come together. We have all the right people and he’s done a great job putting sponsorship together with Precision Vehicle Logistics coming on board to help us. I’m glad that I could continue my relationship with Mohawk also, and we’re really excited to get rolling together. Obviously, the organization here is high class, and we’ve got all the tools to make it a great team.”

HWH Performance, founded by Niece Motorsports CEO, Cody Efaw, will be the team responsible for preparing these efforts. The team will run cars built by Longhorn Chassis, one of the most recognizable names in the dirt world.

“Dirt late model racing is something that I’ve always been passionate about since I was a kid going to the track when my father raced,” said Cody Efaw. “We see some of the best talent in the country come from dirt backgrounds, and I think it’s a testament to how tough these cars are to race. We’ve worked with Max before and have been wanting to put together a program like this for a while. It’s going to be fun to take him and run the big events next year with the support of our great partners at Precision and Mohawk.”

The team/driver pairing has a brief history of running together in the past. In 2018, McLaughlin made his NASCAR national series debut driving for Niece Motorsports at Eldora Speedway.

“Al Niece gave me my first opportunity to go NASCAR racing,” continued McLaughlin. “He’s been a big supporter of mine, and so for us to come back together at a much higher number of races is special. We ran well at Eldora and talked about doing more, but I was busy racing on dirt all the time, so now that we can hit a bunch more races next year, I’m ready to go out and compete for wins with this team.”