Notes & Quotes: Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

This season we will be spotlighting a Veteran who has either received or will soon receive a home from Homes For Our Troops, the organization that builds specially adapted homes for severely injured post-911 Veterans.

Liam Dwyer, retired U.S. Marine Corps staff sergeant, is going to be cheering for the No. 14 Homes For Our Troops Chevrolet in a front row seat as he is one of several Veterans attending the race this weekend. Dwyer, who raced in the IMSA Continental Series professionally, credits racing as one of the motivating factors to keep himself going during his recovery. Born in Waterbury, Conn., he now lives in Florida with his wife and two-year-old son. We asked him a few questions...  

What interests do you have?

 LD: "Cars, hockey, jiu-jitsu and playing with my son."

Pets?

LD: "Four dogs (Stella 10, Millie 10, Walter 8, Birdie 6), one cat less than a year old."

Your Military Service? (Year joined, branch, rank, current status with military) 

LD: "U.S. Marine Corps, joined in Oct 2000. Medically retired May 2015."

Where did you serve in the military?

LD: "I was in Iraq Sept 2006 – April 2007, and Afghanistan Dec 2010 – May 2011."

How did you become injured?

LD: "I was first injured in Iraq Jan 2007 after the Humvee I was in was hit by an IED. I was injured a second time in May 2011 in Afghanistan when I stepped on an IED. It was my last game of hopscotch and I begrudgingly lost."

What were the extent of your injuries? 

LD: "The blast blew off my left leg above the knee, severely damaged my other limbs, shrapnel in my abdomen. However, after hours of reconstructive surgery, I am almost ready to be a model in a cologne ad."

How many surgeries did you undergo and what was the length of your recovery? 

LD: "From the date of injury to retirement (May 2015), I had around 50 surgeries. I went back to Walter Reed late 2017 for another surgery, maybe two, but I ended up having 17 surgeries and living there for another three years."

What was the most difficult part of your journey? 

LD: "Accepting the fact that I’ll never be able to deploy again."

The Dwyers outside their HFOT home.

Who are the heroes in your life? 

LD: "I have a few motorsport heroes, the biggest hero in my life is the Marine who I attribute to saving my life, (SST) Aaron Denning." 

Please describe the impact on your life and that of your family of getting a specially adapted home from Homes For Our Troops. How has it changed your life? 

LD: "The best I can do is give an example. The last few nights my son has woken up crying from nightmares. He wakes up crying for me. Thanks to the HFOT home, I’m able to go into his room and comfort him back to sleep. Any other place I have lived, I would not have been able to do that."

How did you find the strength and fortitude to go on? 

LD: "While injured, I began racing cars, which in turn, gave me the motivation to push through the painful days."

Have you been to a race before?

LD: "I’ve been to dozens of races in my life and dozens of race tracks (Indy 500 twice, Daytona 500, Rolex 24hr of Daytona, 12hrs of Sebring, Stadium Super Trucks, and many, many more.) I competed in nearly 100 autocrosses, numerous track days, time trials, raced professionally for four years in the IMSA Continental Tire Series, did the One Lap of America twice and won my class both times."

What are you most looking forward to seeing/doing at the race this weekend? 

LD: "Besides the obvious of watching the race, I really enjoy being in the garage area and watching the crew work on the cars."

What are the top three things on your Bucket List? "

LD: "Attend the 24hrs of Le Mans, the Bathurst 1000 and the Isle of Man TT." (The Isle of Man Tourist Trophy races are an annual motorcycle racing event held on the Isle of Man in May and June of nearly every year since its inaugural race in 1907).

(INDYCAR Photo)

CAIO COLLET makes his NTT INDYCAR Series debut this weekend driving the No. 4 Combitrans Amazonia Chevrolet. Collet moved up from the INDY NXT by Firestone series where he claimed the vice-champion title last year. The 23-year-old Brazilian has competed in and won races in Formula 3, Formula Renault Eurocup and French F4 after claiming multiple titles in karting. Also making its INDYCAR debut on the No. 4 Chevrolet is Combitrans Amazonia, a logistics corporation based in Sao Paulo, Brazil which provides road cargo transportation, excluding hazardous materials, and moving services, conducted on an intercity, interstate and international basis.

In making your INDYCAR debut, what are you excited about this year?

CC: "I’m really excited for the opportunity to race in INDYCAR and to do it with AJ Foyt Racing. It’s a legendary team with a lot of history, and there’s a strong motivation inside the group to keep improving. For me, it’s about learning every weekend, growing as a driver, and helping move the team forward while competing at the highest level."

Collet at speed in testing. (INDYCAR Photo)

How will you deal with the pressure?

CC: "Pressure is part of racing at this level, and I see it as something positive. I’ve dealt with pressure throughout my career, especially in the junior series. The key for me is to stay focused on the process, take it step by step, and trust the work we’ve done with the team and focus on the execution."

What did you learn at the Sebring test that will help you in St. Pete?

CC: "Sebring was very important to understand the car better, especially in terms of braking, tire management, and what balance/changes I felt more comfortable with. It also helped me improve my communication with the engineers and understand what tools we have available inside the car. All of that will be very valuable heading into St. Pete." 

What is your goal this weekend?

CC: "The main goal is to have a clean and consistent weekend. As a rookie, learning is a big part of it, but I also want to be competitive, make smart decisions, and be there at the end with a solid result. If we execute well and stay out of trouble, a good finish will come naturally."

The No. 4 Combitrans Amazonia Chevrolet carries the colors of the Brazilian flag. (INDYCAR Photo)

What is the toughest thing about St. Pete?

CC: "St. Pete is tough because it’s a very tight street circuit with no margin for error. The walls are close, grip levels change a lot during the weekend, and track position is extremely important. You need to be very precise, especially in qualifying."

What do you like about St. Petersburg?

CC: "I really like the character of the track—it’s fast for a street circuit and very technical. The flow of the lap is great. The city itself is also awesome, with great energy and fans, which makes it a nice place to start the season."

(INDYCAR Photo)

SANTINO FERRUCCI returns for a fourth season wheeling the No. 14 Chevrolet which will be in the stars and stripes livery of Homes For Our Troops all season. Ferrucci is excited to raise awareness of the charity and increase donations to its valuable mission. The No. 14 HFOT.ORG Chevrolet's patriotic livery carries special significance this year as America celebrates its 250th anniversary.

Carrying the stars and stripes for Homes For Our Troops livery all year long, how will that affect you?

SF: "Honestly, it's an honor and a privilege to be able to carry the stars and stripes and to be racing for such an incredible cause like Homes For Our Troops, with the full intention of winning races, winning the 500 and trying to raise as much money and awareness as we can for our severely injured post-911 Veterans. I get to meet Veterans from all over the country throughout the race season, and getting to hear their stories and meet their families is just incredible. It's a lot of fun to show them the inside of racing because most people don't get that experience."

Ferrucci is proud to carry the American flag inspired livery on the No. 14 Homes For Our Troops Chevrolet all season long. (INDYCAR Photo)

Coming back for a fourth year with AJ Foyt Racing, what are you excited about this year?

SF:"I think over the last three years, we've been through a lot of diversity and change, and we've been able to have really good highs in a season. Being able to put a whole season together would be phenomenal, and I think this year we will have the best opportunity of achieving that goal since I joined the team in 2023."

What did you learn at the Sebring test that will help you in St. Pete?

SF: "The Sebring test is more to just re-acclimate with the car. You know, there were a few things that we had started developing the end of last season that we wanted to confirm, and I felt really good about that. I thought the Sebring test went better than it has done in the past. So definitely excited to implement and carry on this new philosophy that we started working on throughout the winter.  Hopefully it helps us a little bit in St. Pete, since it hasn't been one of our stronger tracks."

What is the goal this weekend?

SF: "I would say first goal is that I really want to have a good qualifying. I think that's really important. I feel like I can qualify really strong, and to start the season off and have good momentum, I think it's all going to start there. As far as the race goes, it's a little bit of a new format using multiple sets of alternate tires, so I think anything can happen. But I'm not so worried about the race, because I think our race pace is one of the best on the grid. So, I'd like to make my life a little bit easier and start off qualifying better."

Ferrucci is meeting his challenges head on this season. (INDYCAR Photo)

What is the toughest thing about St. Pete?

SF: "I'd say the toughest thing about St Pete. is probably getting through the start. I think if you can manage to get through the opening lap clean and unscathed, you'll be in for a good race."

What do you like about St. Petersburg?

SF: "To be honest, I just like being in Florida this time of year, to be somewhere warm in March and leave the cold. Also, it's just nice to be by the water. It's one of our better street courses for fan engagement. I just always love that it's our season opener, because after a long winter, there's nowhere I'd rather be than Florida."

AJ Foyt Racing welcomes several new sponsors this season.

Hendricks Commercial Properties and Geronimo Hospitality Group, both based in Beloit, Wis. and founded by entrepreneur Diane Hendricks, are the primary marketing partners of the No. 14 Chevrolet. The real estate development company and boutique hotel and restaurant company donated the No. 14's primary livery to Homes For Our Troops this season to raise awareness of the nonprofit's mission. The companies' logos appear on the car's front wings, aeroscreen and rear wing.

SEOPS Space joins the team as an associate sponsor for the first four races of the season. With headquarters in Giddings, Texas, SEOPS is a leading provider of satellite deployment and hosted payload operation services for the aerospace sector. The company's logo will be on the nose of the No. 14 Chevrolet throughout March for its first foray into motorsports.

AJ Foyt Racing welcomes back the following sponsors:

VensureHR is expanding its presence on the No. 14 Chevrolet this season as enters its second year with the team as a major associate marketing partner. The logo appears atop the sidepods, on the nose and rear wheel ramps of the car. The company provides payroll and HR administration services to small and mid-sized companies and is increasing its footprint across that sector.

K-Air Leasing, a private jet leasing company based in Colorado, returns to support the team along with longtime associate sponsors Cleveland-based Sherwin-Williams Coil Coatings, Housby, the Des Moines, Iowa Mack truck sales, leasing and services company founded in 1969, and Indianapolis-based Stage Ninja, which makes retractable cable reels and clamps.

Texas-based sponsors include Jon Hart Design, which produces high-quality American handcrafted leather bags, travel goods and accessories in San Antonio. Based in Houston, PetroActive manufactures a wide range of diesel and gasoline fuel additives. Also Houston-based, RTIC Outdoors, best known for their high-performance, durable coolers, returns for a second year with the team which is using the RTIC coolers in the pits and in the paddock.

The Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg will be broadcast on FOX Sunday afternoon starting at 12 noon ET. Friday practice will be broadcast on FS2 from 1-3pm; Saturday practice (9:30 - 11am) will be broadcast on FS1 with Qualifying (4:30 - 6) will be on broadcast on FS2. Sunday's morning warmup (9:05-9:35) will be broadcast on FS1.