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At age 24, Giovanni Scelzi has been racing sprint cars for nearly a decade.
Still, the Fresno, Calif., native, who calls Des Moines, Iowa, home is about to embark on a significant change in his racing career.
Scelzi will drive for the new Spire Motorsports sprint car team and will race for the High Limit Racing championship. Scelzi spent several seasons on the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series tour before hitting the High Limit trail as a fill-in for injured driver Tyler Courtney with Clauson Marshall Racing during the second half of last season.
Under the direction of veteran sprint racing crew chief Eric Prutzman, Scelzi will drive the No. 77 entry, which will have an affiliation with Clauson Marshall.
“I’m very excited. From the team ownership to my crew chief and my crew guys I am looking very forward to what next year holds,” Scelzi said following the announcement during last week’s PRI Trade Show. “Anytime a driver can find stability and worry less about what car you are driving and more about the car you are actually competing in — anytime you can do that and focus on trying to win races and being competitive, it always helps.”
But creating a team from scratch can be a challenge.
“It’s something as simple as ordering all the parts and making sure you are prepared. Getting parts in time is a challenge. Volusia is right around the corner,” Scelzi explained. “Our offseasons aren’t very long and having everyone prepared and the guys in place is important. It is always new.
“You have a new crew chief and a new driver, seeing if that relationship will work. I feel like with the experience that Eric has and with as long as he has been around and as long as I have known him, we’ll be fine.”
Scelzi believes that chemistry among team members “just happens.”
“From my experience, I just kind of feel like it just happens. You either kind of gel or you don’t,” said the son of NHRA drag racing champion Gary Scelzi. “If you are trying to make it work, normally it’s not going to work. I feel like it’s a relationship. I will spend more time with Eric than I probably will my girlfriend.
“I’ve known Eric since I was probably 10 years old going to my dad’s shop in Fresno with TSR. He’s someone I respect a lot and very much look up to.”
Scelzi, who is a 12-time national series winner, looks forward to seeing some different tracks as he embarks on his first High Limit Racing campaign.
“I love going to new places. Running the Outlaws the last couple of years, I feel like the schedule is very similar,” Scelzi said. “High Limit has kind of changed it up a bit and is going to new tracks. Going to Texas Motor Speedway was a cool one, and Davenport Speedway was cool because it is close to home in Des Moines.
“Anytime you can see new places and experience new things is always fun.”
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