Here at Walero, we are always extremely proud of our talented and hard-working athletes & ambassadors, all of whom echo our brand values. In 2022, we welcomed Patrick Staropoli as a Walero brand ambassador after his shortlisting in our 2022 Be The Next Walero Athlete Competition and were delighted to have the opportunity to get the Walero base layers into the hands of a medical professional!

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Now in 2024, Patrick has continued on his racing journey alongside his professional career as a vitreoretinal surgeon, and this year sees him propelling forward a ground breaking initiative to raise awareness for the battle against blindness and retinal degeneration with his ‘Driving To Fight Blindness' campaign. We took some time to sit down with Patrick and find out what it means to be combining his love of racing with his ongoing medical career and much more.

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Every racing driver has a unique background and a unique story. Patrick Staropoli is no different. The 34-year-old holds a number of impressive achievements; an alumni of Harvard University with highest honours, a doctorate at the revered Bascom Palmer Eye Institute in Miami and the only doctor in history to ever win a NASCAR race.

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Patrick kickstarted his racing career as a 13 year old in karting and quickly made his way up the junior ranks as he looked to pursue his ultimate dream of racing in NASCAR. Patrick would impress those around him with some impressive performances, quickly progressing up the stock car ladder as he looked to further his fledgling professional medical career, of which he was extremely passionate about.

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In 2013, Patrick would achieve his NASCAR dream in resounding fashion after he was chosen as the winner of the PEAK Stock Car Dream Challenge, run by the prestigious NASCAR Cup Series Team, Michael Waltrip Racing. 

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“They picked me as the winner and it was a dream come true,” Patrick said. “I got to be a development driver for Michael Waltrip Racing and the grand prize was one race in NASCAR, and Peak Motor Oil was going to be the sponsor.”

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Aged 23, Patrick could now say he was a fully-fledged NASCAR racer. All of this was achieved whilst juggling his ongoing studies at medical school as he now looked to balance his racing dreams with ambitions of becoming a doctor and a partial season in the NASCAR K&N series would follow as Patrick eagerly chased his ultimate goal.

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“I ended up taking the year off from medical school because I knew that doing both would be too much of a crazy juggle. So I did a research year where I completed ophthalmology research and then raced on the weekends. We only had seven races but in that time I ended up winning one of them, and had three top-fives and 6 top-tens.

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“I took a small opportunity, made it into a bigger one and basically got to live out my childhood dream right there and haven’t looked back since.”

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Now fast forward to 2024, Patrick has become a fully qualified Vitreoretinal Surgeon, carrying out extremely complex surgeries to help people with medical issues related to the Retina, which is crucial in enabling the eyes to function healthily in day to day life. The majority of Patrick’s weekly work as a surgeon is often extremely intensive and has allowed him to fully understand and appreciate the difficulties that many people face daily. This has spurred Patrick to create his brand-new racing initiative, the aptly named ‘Driving To Fight Blindness Campaign’ which has certainly hit the ground running since its inception in May 2024.

“Throughout my time in ophthalmology, the landscape for treating diseases related to the eyes has rapidly expanded. We have better, longer-lasting treatments for diseases we have been treating for many years and we have new treatments for diseases that previously had to be observed because there was no treatment. It’s an exciting time in our field..”

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“I’m lucky to work at Retina Consultants of Texas because the team there came up with the idea of using the motorsport platform to raise awareness for retinal diseases and make people aware of the incredible work and treatments which can be done to help millions not just across the US, but globally as well. The campaign is focused around fundraising for research and patient outreach initiatives that we carry out at my workplace and across the country which need that extra boost to get going!”

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Patrick has looked to tie in this brand new initiative with his 2024 motorsport campaign which has seen him taking on two challenges in NASCAR with the Super Late Model Regional Division in Florida and also the NASCAR Tour Type Modified which sees him bolster his already impressive short-oval reputation.

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“I am very fortunate to have an amazing group of people around me, especially the teams that I get to drive for – Jim McCoy Racing and Coulter Motorsports. They are all extremely supportive of my wider goals within motorsport and how I want to take this initiative to the next level.”

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“The goal of the campaign is to compete on a national level and utilise the platform to raise awareness for the difficulties that many people face daily with vision problems that aren’t necessarily glasses or cataracts related. At the moment we are trying to piece everything together so we can maximise our impact, but we plan to do local activations around the races. This involves screening services so we can refer those with issues to their local optician, or even just providing a free eye health check for those who need it.”

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“Sometimes realising you have a vision issue is difficult because the change is so gradual or is compensated for by the other eye. Other times, insurance issues or being unaware of newer treatment options can be barriers to people accessing care. I really want this initiative to be the platform to reach those people, and it is something I am very passionate about as I have always looked to tie in important medical causes with my racing endeavours.”

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As Patrick continues to drive forward his initiative on and off the track, the goals for his racing career remain the same.

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“The ultimate racing goal is to be at the top level of national competition Stateside,” he claimed excitedly. “I would love to be racing in a top national series like Xfinity, the Craftsman Truck series or ARCA championships. To continue the positive momentum and reach the top of the NASCAR ladder has always been a dream of mine.”

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“I also think if we can continue to build up the Driving To Fight Blindness campaign and really take it to the next level with regards to how much funding and awareness we can raise, that would be awesome. I really feel we can make a difference with this campaign in the world of ophthalmology and create some new interest from those in the world of motorsport. Everyone knows how vital your eyes are in racing, so tying this initiative into that makes perfect sense.”

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The Driving To Fight Blindness campaign is a fantastic initiative and really shows how motorsport can be used to drive awareness for a cause that not many people will be aware of, and one that impacts millions worldwide on a daily basis. You can find out more on the initiative through the link here and also follow Patrick’s ongoing NASCAR journey through his Instagram, Facebook and website.