Gary Scelzi Motorsports

Giovanni Scelzi Earns Runner-Up Result during Second Career Sprint Car Race

Giovanni Scelzi Earns Runner-Up Result during Second Career Sprint Car Race

Inside Line Promotions – ANTIOCH, Calif. (April 25, 2016) – Giovanni Scelzi powered to his first career podium finish in a sprint car during only his second career race in the sport.

The 14-year-old topped his fourth-place finish during his sprint car debut by earning a runner-up result last Saturday at Antioch Speedway, where he made a late-race bid to reach Victory Lane.

“Sprint cars are so big and lazy,” he said. “It’s completely different from what I’m used to. It’s just weird being in the driver seat because the last three or four years I’ve been working on them.

“(Antioch Speedway) is really, really small so it’s good getting a variety on my schedule. The track was slick to the fence. It’s good to race on different surfaces so I can hopefully get better quicker. I’ll be going to a few different places this year in a sprint car so hopefully it’ll help me be more versatile.”

Scelzi didn’t have any problems adjusting to the new division or a new track as he rallied from fifth to third place in a heat race to open the night.

“We got into fourth on the start and then about Lap 6 we passed a car on the entrance of turn three and pulled away,” he said. “I closed in on second, but we ran out of laps.”

That lined Scelzi up on the inside of the second row for the 25-lap main event.

“I fell to fourth on the initial start,” he said. “I got back up to third and ran there for a little. On a restart I passed Koen Shaw on the bottom in turns one and two for second probably halfway through. I ran up on the leader. On the last lap going into turn three he went to the bottom and I went to the top and he beat us by only half a car length at the finish line. It was pretty close at the end.”

Scelzi will take the momentum of a second-place result into next Friday’s sprint car race at Keller Auto Speedway in Hanford, Calif., where he will drive for Roth Motorsports. Scelzi will wrap up the weekend on Saturday in a micro sprint at Delta Speedway in Stockton, Calif.