In 2023 Mullinax Racing set out for their most ambitious season of racing yet, and it brought back some awesome results.
Following an impressive sophomore season in the 604 Late Models in 2022, Caden Mullinax and the Mullinax Racing team eagerly prepared for the young driver's rookie Super Late Model season. However, he wouldn't undertake this journey alone; Maddux Mullinax and Josh Adkins took charge of the 604 Late Model operations.
Despite these plans, the season started off with a bit of a mix-match with Maddux running his Super Late Model at the Ice Bowl in Janurary. In his first attempt at the Ice Bowl, Maddux earned an eleventh place starting spot but had to pull off due to steering issues.
Soon after, the team headed to Tampa Bay, Florida, for the CRUSA Winter Nationals and four days of intense racing. Throughout the week, Josh and Caden competed against a massive field of 60+ cars and even secured a spot in the main event with a B-Main win.
With the winter racing behind them, the team dedicated themselves to Scheaffer's Oil Spring Nationals Series, with Caden taking the wheel. This marked his first attempt at running a regional series, pitting him against some of the best dirt racers in the country on a weekly basis.
Throughout the season, the team experienced numerous highs and lows, traveling out of state nearly every weekend to compete against large fields. Over the season Caden made eight out of the ten races with two top tens, a top five, and a fifth place finish in the points.
These races established Caden as a formidable competitor on the regional scene, earning both the team and the rookie driver respect among their peers. Shortly after the Spring Nationals, Caden made his national series debut with the Lucas Oil Late Models at Smoky Mountain Motor Speedway.
In his first ever start with the biggest show in Late Model Racing, Caden took home a solid finish of 16th. He then built upon that finish with one of his biggest starts in his career at The Deep Fried 75.
The second half of the season began to wind down, but not before Caden achieved two more top-ten finishes, claiming tenth place at the Sam Pugh Memorial and fifth place at the American Allstars' Battle at the Bullseye. Entering the fall, Caden just had two more races left, the Fall Classic at Whynot, and The Gobbler at Duck River.
Mechanical issues hit hard on day two of The Fall Classic when a bracket broke in the rear end during qualifying, preventing Caden from making it to the show in his first Fall Classic attempt. A few weeks later, Caden battled back from a series of unusual events during The Gobbler to secure a solid 16th-place finish.
While the younger brother travled across the South, Maddux was busy traveling to more track in one year than he had ever done before. Though he only ran ten races throughout the season, Maddux visited eight different tracks over four states.
Maddux's season highlights included a come-from-behind performance at I-75 Speedway, starting 12th and finishing 6th in just eight laps, along with two top-fives and three top-tens. On his first visit to Fort Payne Motor Speedway, he secured a close second-place finish.
The season was also one full of changes for the team as they partnered up with Black Diamond Race Cars as an affiliate. Longtime driver and crew chief for the team, Josh Adkins, also left the team midway through to summer.
The team also debuted their new wraps for both Caden and Maddux along with plenty of new merchendice. Their social media gained over 2K followers and the website now has an online store where you can buy Mullinax Racing merch and ship it to your own home.
As the team looks forward to 2024, their plans involve entering even more significant races and placing a greater emphasis on achieving results. Stay updated on the team's progress by visiting their website or following @mullinaxracing on Facebook and Instagram. Explore the store page to grab some fantastic Dirt Racing Merch for yourself!