Four-time NHRA world champion Gary Scelzi, driver of the Mopar/Oakley
Dodge Charger Funny Car, took his first stint behind the wheel of his
Scelzi Enterprises/Jeg's/K&N Filters USAC car in a practice session
for
the Dodge Chili Bowl Nationals this past Tuesday night.
For Scezli, those laps were the culmination of several years of
planning and going to school to learn how to drive a sprint car. For
some the sight of a drag racer climbing into a car that has to make
four left turns might be a jaw dropper. However, for Scelzi it's just
another experience in the world of motorsports.
“It is absolutely true,” Scelzi replied when initially asked over the
winter if he was going to compete in the Chili Bowl. “ I own a USAC
pavement car and a USAC dirt car that (17-year-old) Michael Faccinto
drives. And one of the things I've wanted to do since I drove the Ford
Focus celebrity race in 2003 (at the Chili Bowl) was to race the Chili
Bowl itself. And now that I own my own USAC team I told everybody on my
team that, OK I'm going to run the Chili Bowl this year.