From watching his first NASCAR race on TV to studying engineering with dreams of joining a race team, Martin Gatzulis has turned a childhood spark into a passion for motorsports. What started with video games and go-karts has grown into competitive racing, both on the track and working behind the scenes.

Hometown:  Wichita, Kansas

Number:  91

Division: Pro

Team: Team Jordan Racing

1. How did you get your start in racing?

It really all started with my dad having on NASCAR one day. That wasn’t very usual and then I started watching that, really liked it. From there I got into video games like “Gran Turismo” and started playing those all the time and watching NASCAR races when I could. That turned into asking my parents to get started in racing and I then eventually got into Go-Karting.

2. How did you pick the number 91?

Being from Kansas, I’ve always been a big Kansas City Chiefs fan and my favorite player at the time back when I first started racing was Tamba Hali and he wore 91. I liked the number because it was kind of unique.

3. Who is your biggest inspiration?

I’d say my parents for sure because I really admire how hard they work for everything we have and how hard they work for myself and my family. They’re the reason I am able to race and the reason I’m able to do a lot of things in my life.

4. What is your favorite racing memory?

My first ever NASCAR race I ever went to. It was the 2014 spring race at Kansas Speedway. That was my first in-person exposure to racing and it was an entertaining race in general.  

5. How do you get focused before a race?

I don’t really have a set routine before a race. I mostly just want to know what’s going on with the car, making sure the car is ready to go, with everything set up right. Focusing on what I can control before a race.

6. What is your favorite track?

I think the track I’ve had the most fun at has been the infield road course at Charlotte Motor Speedway. It was the only road course we’ve driven on my first time road course racing. It was a lot of fun, new challenge and new experience.

7. What obstacles did you face being from Kansas and wanting to race?

It was hard to race throughout the season because it took a lot of work to get to the racetracks, since they were far away when I first started Legend Car racing.  It took a while to get used to Legend Car racing because I wasn’t racing every week, it was more or so five or ten times a year.

8. What has been your favorite national event that you have raced at?

Winter Nationals last year. It was my first time and I think I had a lot of fun there. It was cool having an event that lasted all week and being able to race around the same people for a whole week. It was really competitive and I thought it was a lot of fun, a really cool big event.

9. What made you switch from the black, with blue and yellow accent to red and yellow?

The black car was the scheme that I had first bought a Legend Car in. I didn’t hate it. It was okay, but I went with red because it's easier to pick in the tracks on the TV screen. So, anybody watching could immediately see where I was at.

10. You’ve been racing since 2020, how has racing changed over the years for you?

Working in the industry has become something I want to do for the rest of my life as a career. It used to be just a hobby and ever since then my love for racing has grown into something even more.

11. Did the job at Hendrick Motorsports bring you here or were you already living in Charlotte?

I’ve been going to school here at the University of North Carolina Charlotte, studying Mechanical Engineering with the goal of getting a job with a team like Hendrick Motorsports. It was the school that first brought me out here in Charlotte. 

12. What are your 2025 racing goals

I just want to keep on running. I’ve been learning a lot about doing the set up and car maintenance on my own. Keep that up and keep on improving. Being able to make decision on my own about the car and not just the driving side. I just want to keep on improving speed and race craft, being smart on the track and taking advantage of things.

13. What is your ultimate goal in motorsports?

My ultimate goal is to have a career as an engineer in NASCAR and another top motorsports division and for myself racing, to be able to go out and have fun at a local short track with my own cars, just to have fun on the weekend.