Aidan Davis loves motorsports, and he’s on his own unique track to turn his passion for racing and medicine into a dream career. A first-year medical student at the Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine (MSUCOM), Davis hopes to one day become a motorsports medicine physician.
As an undergraduate, he participated in the college’s Osteopathic Medical Scholars Program (OMSP). Because of that experience, he feels his pursuit of a degree in osteopathic medicine will be especially advantageous. “OMSP helped me gain an understanding of osteopathic medicine where I could make a bridge and see the need for osteopathic medicine in motorsports,” Davis said. “From my experience, the presence of D.O.s (doctors of osteopathic medicine) in motorsports is quite limited and, in my career in medicine, I aim to change that.
“Formula 1, INDYCAR, Sports Car and NASCAR drivers are high-performance athletes, and certain medications could impair their driving performance, which can impact their own safety and the safety of others. So, how cool would it be if one day I can use osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) before and after races to make improvements in performance and safety, which is a future research project I’m looking forward to pursuing.”
It’s one more research investigation to add to Davis’ long list of racing projects, which he currently studies with Dr. David Ferguson, Ph.D., associate professor in MSU’s Department of Kinesiology, in the Spartan Motorsport Performance Lab.
Current research: spinal injuries, cooling and athletic performance and nutrition
The auto racing world is exciting, but can be dangerous. At high speeds, any car wreck is serious, and delivering the right care at the right time can make all the difference, especially when it comes to spinal injuries.
Davis and Dr. Ferguson are exploring the post-crash extraction methods in INDYCAR to determine the best methods to immobilize the cervical spine. For this project, Davis helped find and test a sensor to compare spinal movement during extractions. Then, he sat in an open cockpit car while wearing the sensor. He was extracted, and the sensor measured the movement of his spine during the process. The team plans to gather more data by testing the sensor again, both in open and closed cockpit cars to establish a safety protocol across all of motorsport.
While wrecks are the standout danger of professional racing, there’s another, less obvious one. Under the sweltering sun, inside protective helmets and fire-proof racing suits, race car drivers fight an uphill battle against thermal strain and heat exhaustion. They stay hydrated and wear special garments to keep as cool as possible. But with race season temperatures growing hotter and hotter across the globe, innovative solutions are a must. Davis, Dr. Ferguson and the lab team have worked with NASCAR, INDYCAR and Formula 1 to study reliable ways to physiologically cool race car drivers during competition.
Davis is also engaged in human performance research. The lab has a close relationship with the Wayne Taylor Racing with the Andretti GTP team for the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA), which competes in races lasting anywhere from two-and-a-half to 24 hours. Most recently, they’ve conducted studies related to nutrition and athletic improvement.
“We focused on nutrition and hydration, making sure the drivers are optimally hydrated to maximize their performance,” Davis explained. “We looked at drivers’ macronutrient intake between stints and leading up to when they jump into the car.”
On campus, the lab directly supports the testing and training of drivers. They offer a wide range of tests, including a DEXA scan – an X-ray that offers an in-depth look at body 
“The average person most likely could not drive a Formula 1 or INDYCAR at their maximum speeds. The g-forces experienced would make it very difficult to keep your head facing forward while driving. Depending on the track or circuit, drivers can experience anywhere from two to six g-forces,” Davis said. “It also varies car to car – Formula 1 cars pull way more g’s compared to NASCAR. Depending on the driver who comes in for testing and training, we’ll prepare them to tolerate more or less g-force.
“Dr. Ferguson’s extensive research in motorsports has yielded physiological benchmarks. In the lab, we generate performance plans for the drivers to meet those benchmarks and go be the best drivers they can be.”
From long-time fan to full-time student-researcher
Davis started out early as a racing fan. Since he was 5 years old, he and his dad would pick their favorite racers every Memorial Day weekend for the Indianapolis 500 and attend the Detroit Grand Prix on Belle Isle. But it wasn’t until COVID-19 hit that Davis went from a casual fan to realizing his true passion for motorsports.
Davis began his college career at the height of the pandemic in 2020. Besides his studies, he found little else engaged him during lockdown the way watching motorsports did. Knowing his desired career path, he began to wonder if it was possible to pursue both medicine and motorsports.
As luck would have it, he was exactly where he needed to be. While looking up medical research in motorsports, Davis discovered Dr. Ferguson and reached out to express interest. Dr. Ferguson invited Davis to join his lab group.
Davis was all in, and shortly after he joined, Dr. Ferguson and Michael Reid, Ph.D., professor of Applied Physiology and Kinesiology and dean of the College of Health and Human Performance at the University of Florida, were awarded a research grant from NASCAR. Davis and other lab members got to attend major NASCAR races and conduct biometric testing on Cup and Xfinity drivers during the race. They used their data to learn about the drivers’ heat responses and how to improve safety from a physiological standpoint
“When I first joined Dr. Ferguson’s lab, I never thought things would reach the level they have. It has been a privilege and a dream come true being able to travel to race tracks like Daytona, Watkins Glen, Darlington, Circuit of the Americas and Indianapolis Motor Speedway while meeting and working with the top teams and drivers in the world. Dr. Ferguson has become a mentor of mine. I’m so thankful and excited for what the future holds.”
In 2021, Davis had the opportunity to attend the International Council of Motorsport Sciences’ annual congress meeting, where he met Julia Vaizer, M.D., chief medical officer (CMO) of NTT INDYCAR Series and director of the Motorsports Medicine Fellowship at the Indiana University School of Medicine. Dr. Vaizer had a long list of research she was interested in, which introduced a great opportunity for Davis, Dr. Ferguson and the rest of the Spartan lab to partner with INDYCAR.
Davis is especially excited about this collaboration because he sees a future as a racing organization’s CMO for himself.
“Just seeing what Dr. Vaizer is doing, that’s somewhere I want to be one day. It’s definitely something I know I want to do, and I know I’ll be passionate about it,” Davis shared. “Being at the racetrack in medical and research settings, I just get so much adrenaline and joy – it doesn’t feel like I’m doing work. It’s a fast-paced environment, and fans are there to have fun. It makes me happy being there.”
Davis’ current struggle is deciding which aspect of motorsports he enjoys more: the medical research or the clinical practice.
“I want to combine them!” Davis shared. “In all the experience I’ve had, I’ve seen a lot of different aspects of motorsport medicine, and now I’m super excited to keep pursuing it. I want to see, as a medical student, how my perspective changes and how I can incorporate what I learn at MSUCOM and take that to racetracks.”
Davis’ press and research
MSU Lymann Briggs College: Curiosity drives Briggs undergraduate researchers to study NASCAR driver performance with Dr. David Ferguson
Research from the Spartan Motorsport Performance Lab:
- Ask the Expert: are race car drivers athletes?
- College of Education: A winning combination for athletic excellence and diabetes
By E. LaClear