Patrick Staropoli joins Cook Racing Technologies for multi-race campaign
03/24/2025 09:29 AM
Cook Racing Techonologies (CTR) announces today that (Dr.) Patrick Staropoli, a Houston-based Retina Surgeon, will compete part-time in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series (NCTS) and the ARCA Menards Racing Series (ARCA) in 2025.
On Friday, March 28, Staropoli will kick off the multi-race campaign under the lights of Martinsville Speedway where he will compete in the Syfovre (pegcetacoplan injection)-sponsored No. 84 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro. Staropoli‘s first ARCA start of the season with CRT is set at Kansas Speedway on May 9 in the No. 17 entry.
Staropoli, a Harvard University graduate and full-time retina surgeon by day, is a second-generation race car driver. In 2013, the 35-year-old gained national recognition by winning the PEAK Stock Car Dream Challenge. The Plantation, Florida-native has beat out some of NASCAR’s top drivers to earn a spot with Bill McNally Racing in the ARCA West Series during the 2014 season, including runner-up of the 2013 PEAK Challenge and fellow Toyota driver, Chase Briscoe.
"Competing at the upper levels of stock car racing has always been a dream of mine, and I‘m so honored to be able to combine my passion for medicine and motorsports," said Staropoli. "I‘m looking forward to working with Bruce‘s team throughout the season, and I can‘t wait to kick it off at one of NASCAR‘s most popular short tracks."
Staropoli made his return to the regional level of stock car racing, following a 10-year hiatus, earlier this month when he competed in the ARCA event at Phoenix Raceway for Venturini Motorsports. In the event at Phoenix Raceway, Staropoli qualified 12th and brought home an eighth-place finish. Staropoli has made ten starts across the various ARCA series throughout his career, capturing one win, two top-five and seven top-10 finishes. With a 2014 ARCA West victory at Irwindale Speedway, Staropoli became the first Doctor in NASCAR history to win a race.
As a board-certified medical and surgical retina specialist, Dr. Patrick Staropoli practices medicine for Retina Consultants of Texas, a Houston-based organization. He is a published researcher in various areas of clinical practice. . The full-time physician and part-time racing driver finished his vitreoretinal surgery fellowship and ophthalmology residency at the nation’s top-ranked eye hospital, Bascom Palmer Eye Institute.
"I look forward to working with Patrick on and off the track," said Bruce Cook, owner and crew chief at Cook Racing Technologies. "He‘s a great guy with a natural ability to race, and his determination fits right in with our program. We‘re thankful for the opportunity to work with him and the Syfovre team this season."
Cook Racing Technologies (CRT) is a championship-winning team that competes in the ARCA Menards Series and is part-time organization in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. CRT has collected eight wins and one series championship in ARCA. CRT is owned and operated by Bruce Cook, a well-known member of the NASCAR and short track racing industry. Cook has decades-worth of experience at the mechanic and crew chief levels, including time at Roush Racing, Robert Yates Racing, JR Motorsports, Kevin Harvick Incorporated, and many others. He‘s a NCTS championship winning crew chief, and has won with Tony Stewart at Daytona International Speedway twice in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
Tune in to Staropoli‘s first race of his campaign with CRT by watching the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race at Martinsville Speedway on March 28th at 7:30 PM ET on Fox Sports 1 and SiriusXM NASCAR Channel 90.
— Cook Racing Technologies–
