MOORESVILLE, N.C. – Maples Motorsports is proud to announce that 17-year-old Austin Vaughn, from Burnsville, Mississippi, will join the team for the full ARCA Menards Series East schedule in the No. 19 car.
In addition, Vaughn will be making select ARCA Menards Series starts, with his exact schedule to be determined.
Although he is only entering his second year competing in the ARCA Menards Series platform, Vaughn has already turned heads last season after finishing fourth in the East Series standings while overcoming a lot of adversity. This season, Vaughn hopes to not only improve on that result, but also hone his craft by working alongside the MMS team in the shop and at the track.
“I am thrilled to be joining MMS for the ARCA Menards Series East season,” said Vaughn. “I cannot wait to get the season started and make my team proud, I have to thank Michael Maples for this amazing opportunity and it means so much to me that I get to race for his team.”
“I am super proud to have Austin Vaughn join our team for the East Season,” said team owner Michael Maples. “He impressed me immensely last season with his work ethic, attitude and talent behind the wheel; so when the opportunity came up to work together this year we had to jump at it. I look forward to seeing what Austin accomplishes in 2026!”
The ARCA Menards Series East season kicks off March 28 from historic Hickory Motor Speedway. The event will be streamed live on FloRacing.
![visit Sunoco3c [converted] website - opens in the same window](https://www.arcaracing.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/36/2020/01/Sunoco3c-Converted-291x180.png "visit Sunoco3c [converted] website - opens in the same window")
