Giovanni Scelzi Earns Seven Top Fives and Championship During Rookie Sprint Car Season

Inside Line Promotions – FRESNO, Calif. (Nov. 28, 2016) – Giovanni Scelzi powered to eight micro sprint feature victories and the California Speedweek title this season. However, the highlight of 2016 was the transition from micro sprint to sprint car, which Scelzi made as a 14-year-old.

“It was a big transition,” he said. “It was an eye opener on how difficult it is. I would say it was a learning year. I think my driving came a long way from the beginning of the year.”

Scelzi produced four podiums, seven top fives and 12 top 10s in 17 winged sprint car races. He also claimed the King of Kings title, which served as the track championship for Keller Auto Speedway in Hanford, Calif.

“I can’t thank Dennis and Theresa Roth and Todd Ventura enough for the opportunity to race a sprint car,” he said. “We were really consistent driving for all the different teams. I think we only had a few races out of the top 10. We tried a few different tracks with a few different engines and chassis combos. I got my feet wet in a lot of situations.”

Scelzi, who drove for three different sprint car teams, garnered a top-10 finish during all seven races with Roth Motorsports. He also earned a top 10 during his lone race with Van Dyke Motorsports and Scelzi scored two podiums and four top 10s piloting his family owned race car.

Scelzi’s best finish of second place came twice, with the second occurrence serving as one of the biggest moments of his young career. Scelzi drove the Roth Motorsports entry from 12th to the runner-up result on Sept. 17 at Keller Auto Speedway. The strong finish helped propel him to the King of Kings championship.

“Coming from 12th to second at Hanford, I think there were 30 cars and a lot of good cars,” he said. “There was no time to hang out. You had to go now and as hard as you could every lap. That was huge for us to be able to run up front after starting mid-pack.”

Scelzi’s success in the micro sprint was also outstanding as he picked up eight wins – four at Plaza Park Raceway in Visalia, Calif., and two at both Delta Speedway in Stockton, Calif., and Lemoore Raceway in Lemoore, Calif.

Two of those victories came during the California Speedweek, when Scelzi finished in the top two in all four races to capture the crown.

“To keep the bear (trophy) at home was pretty cool,” he said. “The Speedweek was really cool with how fast we were. That was a huge deal to win that. This year we were definitely on our game going into it.

“I want to thank everyone who helped work on and support our micro sprint team and sprint car opportunities. A special thanks goes to Brent Ventura for his hard work. This year was the best year of my career. Next year we are focusing on the sprint car and I can’t wait to get that first sprint car win.”