By Tony Veneziano

Competing with the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series can be a daunting task for a driver of any age, let alone one who is a teenager and still learning the ins and outs of the sport. For 16-year-old Giovanni "Gio" Scelzi, the next month will provide an accelerated course in sprint car racing as he takes part in 10 Outlaws races.

Scelzi, who hails from Fresno, California, will make his debut with the series at The Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Wednesday, Feb. 28, in the first of a two-night show at the half-mile. A stacked field is entered for the event, including his brother, Dominic, and fellow Fresno-area native Jason Meyers, a two-time World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series champion, who only runs a handful of races each season anymore.

“I’ve been pretty competitive the last few years, stepping up to race with the guys I’ve been racing against,” Scelzi said. “The Outlaws are a whole different caliber. I have the equipment and I have the knowledge behind me, with a good crew chief and strong cars. Hopefully, I’ll be able to have good showings and stand out.”

Gio Scelzi chats briefly about adjusting to the car before practice! #ChiliBowl18 @NosEnergyDrink @ClausonMarshall @cbnationals @GioScelzi @Ghenneberry47 pic.twitter.com/uItDKKlV1l

— Clauson-Marshall (@ClausonMarshall) January 9, 2018

Scelzi will contest the entire early- and late-season West Coast swings with the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series, driving for veteran car owner and crew chief Paul Silva. Scelzi will race in approximately 20 races total aboard the No. 57 this year out West.

“With me being younger and still newer to a lot of the tracks, working with Paul (Silva), who has pretty much been to every race track in the country, should be a good fit and I should learn a lot,” he shared. “Richard and Jennifer Marshall with Priority Aviation played a big part in helping put this all together and I am very appreciative of that they have done.”

In preparation for this week’s pair of races, which begins the traditional West Coast swing for the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series, Scelzi tested at Kellar Auto Speedway in Hanford, CA, about 30 miles south of his hometown. He piloted the family-owned No. 41, which his brother, Dominic, normally drives.

“It was good to get some laps by myself and get back up to speed,” Scelzi noted. “My brother had been racing in Australia the whole offseason and the only racing I did was at the Chili Bowl (in Tulsa, Oklahoma) and Du Quoin (Illinois), so getting some laps in was good for me and to shake his car down as well for him for this week.”

Posted on https://t.co/7oL9vsrBfM: @GioScelzi looks to stand out in 2018, will team up with @indyraceparts team to supplement his schedule with @Paul_Silva57. pic.twitter.com/rDCuwtlbyd

— Jeremy Elliott (@jelliott1011) February 18, 2018

The son of four-time NHRA champion Gary Scelzi, Gio Scelzi was been racing since age 6. He attended his first race at the tender age of 3 months old, as his father traveled the NHRA circuit. The younger Scelzi cut his teeth in Jr. Micro Sprints and Micro Sprints, before making the move to full-size sprint cars a couple of seasons ago.

Last year, Scelzi won three races and finished second in the points with the California-based King of the West Sprint-NARC Sprints Series. He came within a single point of claiming that series championship, with veteran driver Bud Kaeding just nipping him. Scelzi was victorious in 2017 with the King of the West-NARC Series at Thunderbowl Raceway, Antioch Speedway, and Placerville Speedway. 

Scelzi also ventured to the Midwest last year, picking up a win with the Sprint Invaders at 34 Raceway in Iowa, piloting a car for the always potent BDS Motorsports team out of Newton, Iowa. Scelzi swept the entire racing program that evening, picking up a heat race win and a dash victory and claiming the 25-lap main event.

“The tracks on the West Coast are usually more along the lines of being wet and hooked up as well as being predominately small,” Scelzi said. “We really don’t have many big tracks in California, so going to the Midwest and seeing the bigger tracks and getting my feet wet was really good. I learned a lot out there and continue to learn every time I am at the track and in the car.”

Scelzi opened this season indoors at the famed Chili Bowl Midget Nationals in Tulsa in January, driving for the Clauson-Marshall Racing team. Prior to the Chili Bowl, Scelzi made his USAC National Midget Series debut, competing indoors at Du Quoin back in December. In his first trip to the Chili Bowl, Scelzi raced his way into the main event on the final night, which only 24 of the 350-plus entrants were able to say.

“It was fun running the midget indoors,” he said. “At Du Quoin, we struggled a little bit as we were getting the hang of things. We made the show at the Chili Bowl and that was huge. I think we started 16th and were up to 10th and the motor let go. It was an unfortunate end to the week, but getting in the show was a huge accomplishment.”

Following the pair of events in Las Vegas, Scelzi will follow the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series to Perris Auto Speedway in Southern California. The series then heads to Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, where the 16-year-old has won in the past. Scelzi will have the chance to race eight times in his home state with the series over the next month. The Outlaws return to the West Coast in the fall and Scelzi will be in action then as well. He is realistic when asked about his goals when racing with the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series.

“Qualifying has been one of my strong suits and with how the Outlaws format works, you need to qualify good to give yourself a shot at the night and getting a good finish,” Scelzi said. “If I can do my job, during the two time trial laps and start maybe in the first two rows of the heat race, I’d like to put it in the show both nights (at Vegas) and just be competitive. 

"I think it will be good starting off here (in California) with places I’ve seen and places I’ve raced at multiple times. It should help with the learning curve, racing the caliber of cars with the Outlaws, being at places I’m familiar with.”

During the heart of the season, Scelzi will head to the Midwest to team up with Bernie Stuebgen to drive the Indy Race Parts No. 71. The pairing will run a “True Outlaw” schedule, hitting some of the bigger events, including racing at the famed Knoxville Raceway in Iowa.