
Marko Stipp Motorsport has announced that they will retain the services of Evgeny Sokolovsky in 2021 as Sokolovsky plans to do a full-season campaign in both classes this year while also carrying a new sponsorship in the form of Gulf Grandprix Originals.
Evgeny Sokolovsky will be returning to NASCAR Whelen Euro Series in 2021 after Marko Stipp Motorsport announced that they will retain the Ukrainian driver as one of their drivers this year.
“I’m very pleased to continue with Evgeny,” said MSM team owner Marko Stipp in the official announcement. “2020 was our first full season as Marko Stipp Motorsport and it’s great to see that we have satisfied our drivers.”
“Evgeny was very easy to work with and he consistently improved his pace during his rookie year. In our second year together, we now can focus to achieve the next level together.”
Sokolovsky made his debut in NASCAR Euro last year after several years of competition in Raceway Venray’s LMV8 Oval Series. He was originally supposed to compete full-time in just the EuroNASCAR PRO class, but he was selected by MSM to replace Gasper Dernovsek in EuroNASCAR 2 after Dernovsek broke his hand in a crash at Vallelunga.
Sokolovsky’s rookie season in the series was a tough one as he often struggled to keep up with the majority of the field, but he made it up by his impressive finishing record. Sokolovsky finished all of the 18 races that he competed last year, making him one of just six full-time drivers to start and finish all of the races they competed in 2020.

The consistency allowed Sokolovsky to snatch 3rd place in the Challenger Trophy, beating Caso for the final podium spot – and 14th place in the PRO class standings – after Caso retired from the final race at Valencia. His consistent finishes also allowed him to finish 2nd in the Legend Trophy – and 13th overall in EN2 – despite not taking part in the season opening round at Vallelunga.
“During my rookie year, I learnt more and more about what it takes to get up to speed,” said Sokolovsky to euronascar.com. “I thoroughly enjoyed the experience, especially with the close battles I had at the season finale in Valencia. In 2021, I want to keep improving to make it to the top step of the Challenger and Legend Trophy podiums.”
“The team has been very good to me and always had my best interest at heart. Without exception, they were attentive to me and my teammates. I enjoyed the pleasant, yet professional atmosphere and structure within the team. In the end, it was an easy decision to keep going with Marko Stipp Motorsport.”

German clothing brand Grandprix Originals will become the new primary sponsor of Sokolovsky this year. The sponsorship from Grandprix Originals – who gained fame for its Gulf-branded line of clothing – meant that Sokolovsky’s No. 48 Camaro will feature Gulf’s famous blue and orange livery.
The Gulf livery, which will be a first for NASCAR, has been used by Sokolovsky throughout his outings in this year’s running of EuroNASCAR Esports Series.
“Thanks to my collaboration with Gulf Grandprix Originals, we will paint the #48 in the traditional blue and orange Gulf colours,” said Sokolovsky regarding the Gulf livery on his No. 48 Camaro. “It’s a livery that has a lot of history in racing and I can’t wait to see it out on track!”
Disclaimer: Unless noted, all photos used in this article are courtesy of NASCAR Whelen Euro Series / Stephane Azemard.