Eli Johnson, the 31-year-old out of Clewiston, Florida, announced he will compete with the World of Outlaws Late Models for Rookie of the Year in 2026.

On Facebook, the team announced, “Now that the ink has officially dried on the World of Outlaws 2026 membership, Eli Johnson and his team are proud to announce we will be campaigning for Rookie of the Year in 2026.”

“This opportunity would not be possible without the continued support of our partners, sponsors, family, and fans who believe in our program,” the team added. “We’re committed to representing our partners at the highest level, on and off the racetrack, as we take on one of the toughest tours in dirt late model racing.”

One of those partners is Boom Briggs. Johnson told Spence Smithback at WorldofOutlaws.com, “I mean, I feel pretty prepared. There’s a lot that we don’t know. I’ve got Boom Briggs, he’s helping me a lot. Kind of letting me know what’s going to happen and how I need to move forward in the program. I feel like we’ll be OK, mainly because we’ve got a lot of help from him also.”

While there’s still a lot that he and his team don’t know, he did credit competing in the DIRTcar Summer Nationals Hell Tour last year with Brenden and Brody Smith to allow him to chase the World of Outlaws this year, “Honestly, if it wasn’t for Summer Nationals, the Smith guys, if I didn’t have the opportunity to do that, I wouldn’t be doing it at all right now. I mean, I’m super thankful for those guys.”

Johnson finished 16th overall in the Summer Nationals. He had 2 top 5s and 2 top10s in 7 features. His two top 5s came at Shadyhill Speedway and Oakshade Raceway. He finished fourth at both tracks.

As for what his goals are for the year, he shared, “I’d like to get quite a few top 10s and some top fives. Obviously, if I was to get a win this year, that would be amazing. The biggest thing is to just be consistent.”

Johnson begins his campaign for Rookie of the Year with the Outlaws when the season begins with the DIRTcar Sunshine Nationals at Volusia Raceway Park on Thursday, January 22nd. It runs through Saturday, January 24th. The series stays at Volusia for the Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals from Thursday, February 12th through Saturday the 14th. It then heads to Hendry County Motorsprots Park for the Swamp Cabbage 100 double header on February 20th and 21st.

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