A third generation transmission builder, Marco learned the business from his dad Joe. He started working with his dad disassembling transmission cores while still in junior high school. In high school Marco began building transmissions about the same time he started drag racing. This set a pattern that would continue to this day. Marco’s work as a performance transmission builder would not just start with racing, but would grow along with his own racing career. Shortly after graduating from Youngstown State University, he recognized a chance in the drag racing world. More powerful engines and better race cars were combining to overwhelm the rebuilt junkyard transmissions racers had been using for years. Soon, serious racer across the country recognized what local racers already knew: the best automatics were coming from Abruzzi.
Being an accomplished fast bracket racer, Marco realized that just like the transmission business of years before, the converters available weren’t keeping up with the changes in drag racing. The big horsepower engines that were becoming prevalent at all levels of drag racing required a different approach to converter design than the industry had been using. Concerned that his customers weren’t able to get the quality converters they needed, Marco added a state of the art converter shop to his growing business. This led to an extensive testing program that Abruzzi Racing Transmissions and Converters continues to this day, a program that has resulted in the most consistent, durable, and fastest performance converters on the market today.
