While most NASCAR racers cut their teeth at a short track, Josh Bilicki has taken a path less traveled.
Instead of ovals and paint trading racing, it was about a different discipline of racing.
“Like most, I started with go karts at a young age,” Bilicki said. “I started at four and a half. I started racing sports cars and SCCAs sports cars at Road America and I made my IMSA debut in 2015 at Road America, my hometrack.”
Most recently, the Menomonee Falls, WI native competed in his first two NASCAR Xfinity Series races at Phoenix and Homestead-Miami last year. Although his specialty is with road courses, his goal is to transition into stock car racing.
Suffice to say, the versatile racer had some selling points with his desire to compete full-time in NASCAR.
“I like to do it all,” Bilicki remarked. “I’ve raced road courses, an outlaw sled, a type of snowmobile racing that I ran at Eagle River, and I want to dip my feet into dirt racing. I come from road course racing while most of these guys come from circle track racing or late models.
I don’t want to be just known as a road course driver. My goal is to participate full-time in NASCAR for a season. I want to become a full-time NASCAR driver but I come from a little different direction so that’s unique.”
Moreover, Bilicki thrives with challenges. Competing in Saturday’s Irish Hills 250 for the No. 40 MBM Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro, he’ll quickly make his way to another racing event.
With a road course racing background, Bilicki looks to transition to NASCAR full-time. (Photo Credit: Josh Bilicki/Twitter)
“We’re racing here (today) at 1:30 p.m. on Fox Sports 1,” he said. “We’ll be heading to Road America up in Elkhart Lake on Sunday for the 62nd running of SCCA June Sprints. It’s one of the longest sportscar races. It is an amateur race but there’s a lot of professional teams that go up there, including a championship winning IMSA team from Chicago.
There’s a lot of really good teams up there. We’re going to miss practice and qualifying since we’re here racing so we’ll start dead last. We’ll do the morning warmup session at 8 am on Sunday and go out there, start from the back, and hopefully get a podium.”
Before Bilicki can focus on a potential top-three result at Road America, he must take on the 2-mile superspeedway in Brooklyn, MI.
Starting 32nd, the Menomonee Falls, WI native gained valuable track time during Friday’s practice rounds, taking to the track on scuff tires. For a driver that does it all, he realizes that the best way to excel is through on track experience.
Bilicki looks to spend Father’s Day with his dad at a familar place – the racetrack. (Photo Credit: Josh Bilicki/Twitter)
“I’ve really got no stock car experience other than Phoenix, Miami, and Michigan this weekend,” he observed. “However, I use a lot of iRacing to prep myself. I watch a lot of YouTube videos.
During the entire trip here to Michigan, I was watching of YouTube videos. That’s really the closest I can come to besides late models or being at the track.”
Ultimately, Bilicki is a competitor with a genuine passion for motorsports.
At the very least, he will have a handy teammate who’ll drive him from Michigan International Speedway to Elkhart Lake.
“Luckily, my dad is here,” he said with a smile. “He’ll be driving back and forth so I can take a nap. We actually have to pick up our car at West Bend Auto up by us in Milwaukee.
They prepped the car for us. We’ll be there at six on Sunday morning and be at the track by the afternoon.”
