Some first race victories cut as deep as first love, and their effect lingers on with the same passion and intensity. For 16-year-old Dominic Scelzi, gifted racer and genetically blessed son of four-time NHRA Drag Racing Champion Gary Scelzi, that benchmark first came at California’s Stockton-99 Speedway. This has been Scelzi’s first season racing a 410 sprint car and he marked his arrival on the scene by notching his first career King of the West 410 Sprint Car Series victory.
“Getting the win with the King of the West series in Stockton made my team and me feel like we had finally succeeded in our year long goal of running and beating the best in California,” Scelzi remarked. “We have been fast all year long with the 410 motor. The confidence boost was welcome too.”
It is however, what went down after his victory, that has given Scelzi some, not entirely warranted, attention. With his peripheral vision partially blocked and being caught up in the moment of racing, Scelzi did not see the checkered flag and was unaware the race had ended. He continued to charge on after the finish line, inevitably making contact with slowed traffic and flipped his ride onto the roll bar. With the crowd dazed and slightly confused, Scelzi leaped from his car wearing a colossal smile and bolted towards his younger brother Giovanni, his dad, and a crowd of well-wishers, creating an emotional and memorable victory lane celebration.
“As you can see in the video, the flag stand is very hard to see,” Scelzi explains. “When both the white flag and the checkered where thrown, I had cars on the inside of me, and did not see the flags, there isn’t a score board that you can look at to see the lap count. Everyone races until the yellow flag comes out and unfortunately the lap cars in front of me had just completed the race, so the yellow flag had not come out, so nobody knew the race was over. I just didn’t want to be passed – I wanted that win!”
Having drawn the number 3 pill in the dash draw, Scelzi started and finished in the third spot, placing him in the second row of the 30-lap feature event. After the pole-sitter, Willie Croft got upside down on the start of the feature. Scelzi moved up to the pole alongside a red-hot Jonathan Allard. The rookie matched Allard’s every move. Scelzi attempted to poke his nose under Allard several times, but the veteran driver had an answer for each attempt. Then with ten laps to go, Allard suffered a blown motor and Scelzi was positioned to take the win.
The owner of a brand new California Driver’s License, Scelzi’s goal is to get as many races as possible to add to his seat time and experience. “The desire is definitely there,” adds his mom, Julianne. “The only thing Dominic needs is more sponsorship funds to reach his goals. There are many possibilities and hopefully some great opportunities will come in the near future.”
Gary Scelzi Motorsports and the 410 sprint car motor will return to action with King of the West series at Kings Speedway in Hanford, California. Then, they will head to Thunderbowl Speedway in Tulare for the Trophy Cup with the 360 sprint car motor. After the Trophy Cup, they will be back at Stockton Speedway for more King of the West series racing. “I’m also very excited for the Chili Bowl midget race in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in the Matt Wood/Elk Grove Ford entry,” Dominic Scelzi adds.
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