Gersekowski earned the opportunity after being drawn as the winner of the second annual Ultimate Indy 500 Motorsport Prize, which was conducted in conjunction with Pirtek, Team Penske and Speedcafe.com to raise money for the Peter Duncan Neurosciences Research Unit at St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney.
Gersekowski, a 32-year-old from Toowoomba, Queensland, has a rich motorsport background.
He began racing at 14 on dirt tracks and progressed through various categories, including Formula 3 and the Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia Series.
His dream of racing Indycar and at the Indy 500 fell short, but his experience this week was as close as he could get without putting his bum in a race seat.
“Words can simply not explain the experience we have had,” said Gersekowski.
“It has been a dream of mine to come to this race in any capacity, but for us to do it the way we did was incredible.
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“The amount of access we had thanks to Crusher’s contacts and knowledge constantly amazed us, we just didn’t know what was coming next.
“Just when we thought we had done it all, there was something or someone else.
“We have to thank everyone involved at Pirtek, Team Penske and Speedcafe.com for making this possible.
“I know I am at long odds to win again next year, but I can assure you I will have plenty of tickets in the draw. So will Ben (Chapman), so he can win and take me back.”
As part of the tour, the pair enjoyed Team Penske Hospitality and one-on-one tours of both the Team Penske and Ganassi team garages where they had the chance to get as close as you can to the cars.
They also met Kiwi drivers Scott McLaughlin and Scott Dixon, three-time Indy 500 winner Dario Franchitti and former F1 and Indycar driver Stefan Johansson.
They also got some valuable one-on-one time with Gersekowski’s racing hero and 2018 Indy 500 winner Will Power, who is from his home city of Toowoomba.
Gersekowski is now a firefighter in Toowoomba and a special tour of a local Indianapolis fire department was organised as part of the trip.
The pair had PIRTEK Team Murray Indycar team owner and Speedcafe.com founder Brett “Crusher” Murray as their personal tour guide for the five days of the event.
Pirtek CEO Mark Devitt said he was delighted to support the Ultimate Motorsport Prize, which is growing year on year.
“I have seen some of the images of the boys from Indy and it looks like they had an unforgettable time, which has been the goal of the Ultimate Motorsport Prize from day one,” said Devitt.
“We hope the positive stories from the winners each year encourage more and more fans to get involved and the chance for us to raise even more money for the Peter Duncan Neurosciences Research Unit at St Vincent’s.
“We are only a few weeks away from launching our fifth annual Ultimate Bathurst 1000 Motorsport Prize and we have a couple of extra surprises to help us celebrate Pirtek’s 45th year.”
The Indy 500 prize package included return economy airfares to Indianapolis, five nights of five-star accommodation, airport and racetrack transfers, $US1000 spending money, driver meet-and-greets, a personal tour of team garages, police escort to the track on race day, race tickets, access to the starting grid and pit lane, Team Penske and PIRTEK merchandise packs, a photo on the Indy 500 podium and a photo with the Borg-Warner Trophy.
The raffle not only offers a once-in-a-lifetime experience but also contributes to vital medical research.
Funds raised support a senior postdoctoral neurosciences research fellow at the Peter Duncan Neurosciences Research Unit, focusing on treatments for neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.
Tickets for this year’s 2025 Ultimate Bathurst 1000 Motorsport Prize raffle will go on sale in a few weeks.
About Peter Duncan Neurosciences Unit at St Vincent’s Hospital
The Peter Duncan Neurosciences Unit at St Vincent’s Hospital Sydney was established in 2012 and made possible by a donation by Mr Peter Duncan AM Executive Chairman of Pirtek.
The focus has been turning Neurosciences research into treatments for patients suffering chronic neurological neurodegenerative diseases such as dementia, Alzheimer’s, MS and Parkinson’s disease.
Funds raised from the Raffle will support a senior postdoctoral neurosciences research fellow within the Peter Duncan Neurosciences Research Unit.
The new researcher will study adult neuro stem cells and consider ways to improve their regenerative capacity in order to develop new real treatments for brain injury common in high impact sports, and degenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s disease.
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