One Year Anniversary Special | Adrian Wlostowski’s TA2 Title Run & The Rise of iRacing Expo
This week marks one full year of The Pits Are Open — and this anniversary episode delivers two powerful stories from opposite ends of the racing world: grassroots ownership in Trans Am and the explosive growth of sim racing.
Host Will Marotti and producer Alex Smith reflect on the show’s first year, the evolution onto SpeedSport One, and tease a major upcoming motorsports development focused on sustainable sponsorship models for independent teams.
Then the racing talk gets serious.
Trans Am TA2 standout Adrian Wlostowski joins the program after finishing third in points last season — not as a hired driver, but as a team owner-driver running his own operation.
Adrian shares his journey from rebuilding transmissions with his father as a kid, to opening his own race shop at 21, surviving Hurricane Sandy during his first month in business, and methodically building a championship-contending TA2 program.
The conversation dives into:
The intensity of the TA2 Series (38–45 cars per weekend)
Why TA2 is one of the most competitive development platforms in North America
How trusting crew chief Billy Harrison elevated the program
Engineering discipline and data review as keys to consistency
Sponsorship realities and operational precision in modern racing
Adrian makes it clear: 2026 is a championship year. With expanded engineering focus and improved internal systems, the goal is simple — win the title.
George Anzaldo, founder of the iRacing Expo and longtime league organizer, explains how a late-night search for an IndyCar simulator evolved into one of the most ambitious grassroots sim racing communities in the country.
A Chicago Fire Department paramedic by profession, George shares how he:
Built a structured iRacing league from five founding members
Developed broadcast-level race production
Created competitive digital championships
Launched a full-scale Sim Racing Expo in Chicago
Sim racing isn’t just gaming anymore — it’s becoming a legitimate competitive ecosystem with real visibility and opportunity.
🏁 Guest 1: Adrian Wlostowski – Independent Team Owner Chasing a TA2 Championship🖥️ Guest 2: George Anzaldo – Building the Future of Sim Racing