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Patrick Staropoli
American racing driver (born 1989) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Patrick Charles Staropoli (born November 10, 1989) is an American retina surgeon and professional stock car racing driver. He competes part-time in multiple racing series for various racing teams, including the NASCAR Xfinity Series for the No. 24 Toyota GR Supra for Sam Hunt Racing, the NASCAR Truck Series for the No. 84 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro for Cook Racing Technologies, and the ARCA Menards Series for the No. 25 Toyota Camry for Venturini Motorsports.
Born and raised in Plantation, Florida, Staropoli started competing in go-karts at the age of 13. Initially wanting to be a motorsports engineer, he switched interests to the medical field while studying at Harvard University. He continued to pursue both fields in auto racing and medicine after graduation, specializing in ophthalmology at the University of Miami. While at Miami, he continued to make periodical starts in NASCAR, including starts in the third-tier NASCAR Truck Series. After obtaining his master's degree, Staropoli continued to race periodically in late models in various series for eight years. In 2025, Staropoli returned to NASCAR after a nine-year absence.
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Early life and family background
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Staropoli was born on November 10, 1989, in the town of Plantation, Florida, where he was raised.[1] He is the son of Nick Staropoli Jr. and Arlene Staropoli.[2] Staropoli was born alongside a sister named Devon.[3] He was educated at Plantation High School where he graduated in 2008 as the valedictorian of his class.[4][5] While attending Plantation High School, he was involved in numerous extracurriculars and activities. He was the vice president of the school's National Honor Society branch, competed in rocket competitions, and volunteered as a spokesman for an anti-drugs organization.[4][6][7]
After high school, he attended Harvard University, initially majoring in engineering in hopes of becoming a team engineer in NASCAR or Formula One.[4][8] However, he switched majors during his sophomore year, switching to neurobiology after attending a neurobiology panel.[8] He stated in a 2015 interview that the increased broadness of potential jobs in neurobiology appealed to him, causing him to switch.[8] While at Harvard, he joined a club at Harvard focused on conducting eye checks for poor communities.[8][9] Staropoli graduated from Harvard in 2012 with suma cum laude honors.[10]
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Racing career
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Early racing career
According to Staropoli, he was inspired since his childhood to go into racing, having attended races since he was six months old with both his father and grandfather being past racers.[3] When he was 13 years old, Staropoli started racing go-karts in Naples, Florida.[1][11] After a year, he moved into the Pure Stocks division, an entry stock car racing division.[1] He eventually moved into the Super Late Models division for his family race team after achieving straight As throughout his grade school years.[1][3]
2013–2024
In 2013, Staropoli was invited to compete in the PEAK Stock Car Dream Challenge, a reality television show organized by NASCAR racing team Michael Waltrip Racing and its owner Michael Waltrip.[12] Out of 10 finalists, Staropoli won the show, winning a part-time ride in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series for Bill McAnally Racing.[3] He made his debut for the team in the fifth-tier NASCAR K&N Pro Series West at Spokane, finishing in fifth. The following year, Staropoli signed on for a five-race deal for Bill McAnally to race in both the East and West divisions.[13] In March of that year, he earned his first victory in the West Series, winning at Irwindale.[14] Staropoli earned one more top five in the 2014 West Series season,[15] and earned three top-tens in the East Series, with a best finish of sixth at Bristol.[16][17]
Starting in 2015, Staropoli faced a conflict between his medical school work at the University of Miami and his auto racing career. After a sponsorship deal failed to materialize in the winter of 2015, he took a brief hiatus from NASCAR to focus on medical school[18] after making his debut in the fourth-tier ARCA Racing Series at Daytona in February for Empire Racing.[19] He returned to racing that year in September for Bill McAnally,[20] retiring in both of his races at Richmond and Dover.[21] In 2016, Staropoli made his NASCAR debut in the third-tier NASCAR Truck Series at Homestead–Miami, finishing in 31st in a partnership entry between Young's Motorsports and SS-Green Light Racing.[22][23] From 2017 to 2024, Staropoli stepped out of NASCAR to focus on his medical career, occasionally racing in late model and modified divisions in his free time.[24]
2025
As of May 2025, Staropoli races part-time in multiple series, including the fourth-tier ARCA Racing Series, the third-tier NASCAR Truck Series, and the second-tier NASCAR Xfinity Series for various racing teams.[25][26][27] He made his season debut in the ARCA Racing Series at Phoenix on March 7 for Venturini Motorsports, where he finished in eighth after recovering from a spin.[28][29] Three weeks later, Staropoli made his first start in the Truck Series in over nine seasons at Martinsville, finishing in 20th in a Cook Racing Technologies entry.[30] The day after his Martinsville start in the Truck Series, he made his debut in the Xfinity Series at Martinsville in an entry for Sam Hunt Racing, finishing in 16th.[31]
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Non-racing ventures and personal life
Outside of racing, Staropoli pursues a career in ophthalmology,[1][32] currently working as a retina surgeon at the Retina Consultants of Texas.[33] After graduating from Harvard in 2012, he attended the Miller School of Medicine at the University of Miami, graduating in 2017 with a MD.[34] According to Staropoli, he was inspired to enter the medicine field after witnessing a near-fatal racing accident that his father was involved in 2001 at Hialeah Speedway.[16] In 2024, Staropoli launched Driving to Fight Blindness, an awareness campaign focused on retinal diseases.[35] Speaking about his careers, he stated in an interview with WSVN, "I find that I think I’m a better race car driver because I’m a doctor. And the other way around: being a racecar driver makes me a better physician. I think the skills definitely translate."[36]
In 2010, Staropoli was diagnosed with coeliac disease.[5] Staropoli's favorite driver is Jeff Gordon, stating in the Sun Sentinel, "I'm the biggest Jeff Gordon fan... having people tell me my whole life that one day I would end up getting to race [in the Cup Series]. You half believed it, half dreamed it."[37]
Motorsports career results
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NASCAR
(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
Xfinity Series
Craftsman Truck Series
ARCA Menards Series
(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
ARCA Menards Series East
ARCA Menards Series West
* Season still in progress
1 Ineligible for series points
SMART Modified Tour
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References
External links
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