INDIANAPOLIS — Spirit of Speedway will be the primary sponsor of the No. 57 entry driven by Daniel Whitley, fielded by Abacus Racing in the Lucas Oil Chili Bowl.
“We have been pretty single focused on our entry for this year’s Indy 500, but when the opportunity to be involved in the Chili Bowl as a primary sponsor was presented we saw it as an excellent opportunity to be part of another great event and get the word out about Spirit of Speedway,” Will Marotti, team owner of Marotti Autosport said.
Spirit of Speedway was launched by Marotti in 2021 as a crowd fund, with the goal of fielding an entry in the 2023 Indianapolis 500. The sponsor allows investors to work alongside corporate sponsors in the entry, not only giving individuals a chance to share in the thrill of being part of a team entering the Indianapolis 500, but to also honor and celebrate the hometown of the Indianapolis 500 – Speedway, Indiana.
Marotti Autosport first competed in the 2016 Indy 500 as a co-entrant with Schmidt-Peterson and driver Oriol Servia. They qualified 10th and finished in 12th.
“The Indianapolis 500 is the reason I love racing,” Brent Cox, Team Principal of Abacus Racing said. “Growing up as a kid in Indiana, that race means a lot to me. To see Will’s passion for the sport and what he was doing with Spirit of Speedway, it seemed a natural fit for us to work together at this year’s Chili Bowl.”
The Chili Bowl is an event that yearly has over 300 cars entered, with practice and racing over seven days in hopes to make the coveted A-Main Feature race on the final night.
“What Daniel showed us in California is he has the speed to win right now. In the last few weeks of the season, Daniel made a feature in a 410 sprint car at Oval Nationals and made six of the seven feature races in our midget in California,” said Cox. “We are excited to see what he does in Tulsa.”