Three Champion Drivers
Three Proven Winners
One Truck, four chapters
The #31 Thirty One Motorsports Ford tells a story unlike any other truck on the Midwest Truck Series schedule in 2026. Three drivers. Three different chapters of a racing career. A 16-year-old third-generation NASCAR family driver chasing a dream. A 22-year-old six-time series winner who has been winning since he was old enough to vote. A 21-year-old former series champion who took the title at 17. And a 54-year-old veteran who can win in anything with wheels, and who has driven at the NASACAR level.
The #23 is not just a truck. It is a snapshot of what this sport looks like across generations. And every one of these four knows how to win.
Combined race victories
combined championships
Years of combined racing experience
Driver Profiles
Penn Sauter
The son of 2016 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion Johnny Sauter, Penn carries one of the most decorated racing bloodlines in Wisconsin motorsports. Named a 2026 Kulwicki Driver Development Program finalist, Sauter brings third-generation talent and an emerging reputation as one of the most promising young drivers in the region.
James Lynch
A six-time Midwest Truck Series winner who took his first MTS victory at just 17 years old, Lynch has been one of the most exciting young talents in the series since his debut season. A United States Pro Karting Series national champion and five-time Illinois state champion before he ever sat in a truck, Lynch brings speed, experience, and a relentless drive to win.
Brad "JJ" Mueller
A multi-time Slinger Super Speedway champion, 2024 Slinger Nationals champion, and one of the most versatile competitors in Wisconsin short-track history, Mueller races on both dirt and asphalt at the highest local level. With NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and Busch Grand National starts on his resume, the veteran presence Mueller brings to the team is unmatched.
Interested in driving for us?
The No. 31 is built for a rotating lineup, and the seat is never closed for good. If you can run up front and want a truck that gives you a real shot at it, we want to hear from you.
Looking Ahead
The No. 31 Ford was never meant to be a one-driver truck. It is the seat where Thirty One Motorsports puts talent at every stage of a career: a young driver earning his first laps in the series, a proven winner still building toward the front, and a veteran who steps in when a track calls for experience. That rotation is by design, and it is the model the team intends to carry forward.
Every driver who climbs into the No. 31 gets the same truck, the same crew, and the same expectation to run up front. For the younger drivers, that means real seat time in equipment capable of winning, with a team that measures progress in more than finishing position. For the veterans, it means a program that values what they bring beyond the checkered flag, from setup feedback to mentoring the next driver in line.
As Thirty One Motorsports grows, the No. 31 will keep doing what it was built to do: put the right driver in the right truck at the right track. The lineup may change from one weekend to the next. The standard does not.