Bray has been a huge supporter of his racing, Clark says, tolerating his “endless hours in the shop”.As one of the largest franchised dealers of MINI vehicles, Inchcape can offer one of the best and most comprehensive new MINI purchasing experiences available. Photo by Don Simpson James Clarke Photo by Don Simpson James Clarke with partner Miriam Bray and son Liam. Car co-owner and Crew Chief Richard Leblanc (immediately to Clarke’s right) has been guiding the young stock car racer since he first began racing.
“Hopefully by the end of the year we will be at least in the top five and then maybe a few checkered flags next year.” Clarke says his race team is a big part of his success. “We’re pretty confident in the direction we’re going,” Clarke says.
“If it wasn’t for Richard, I don’t think we’d have even thought about moving up.”Ĭlarke says he and Leblanc will get the car more competitive as the season goes on and the Hawkesbury racer expects to be fully in the mix for the 2021 Pro Stock championship. “He’s been my crew chief since the beginning and he’s a big part of the program,” Clarke says. Clarke says Leblanc’s experience and involvement with his racing, both in Mini Stock and now Pro Stock, have been invaluable to his success as a race car driver. Ownership and maintenance costs on the new Pro Stock car are shared by Clarke and co-owner Richard Leblanc, who also serves as crew chief. A normal race costs about $300 in expenses – assuming nothing goes wrong – and that does not include the cost of the car. He is looking to add more sponsors to help cover the costs of competing in the Pro Stock division. Clark receives some financial support from sponsors, including Howe’s Farm Equipment, Triforce Electric, Rich Welding, and his own company J&L Customs. There cost of fielding a Pro Stock car is also significantly more than a car in Mini Stock. It’s always on the limit of whether the car’s turning or you’re going to end up in the wall.” “In the Pro Stock, if you let go of the gas, the car isn’t going to turn. “Coming into the corners in a Mini Stock, you want to let go of the gas to get the car to turn.” “Driving these cars is completely different from a four-cylinder Mini Stock,” says Clarke, of the Pro Stock cars, which are powered by a modified 5.7 litre small-block Chevrolet engine that puts out approximately 350 horsepower. The latter is a much higher powered vehicle, and is rear-wheel drive, instead of the front-wheel drive Mini Stock cars he has been racing. But he doesn’t expect that to last long.Īlthough an experienced stock car racer, Clarke notes there is a huge difference between a Mini Stock car and one in the Pro Stock division. Now in his fourth season of racing, Clarke finds himself back in the same boat in after his move up to the Pro Stock division, as a newcomer struggling to make it to the podium. The six Mini Stock wins were a huge improvement over Clarke’s season in 2019, when he struggled just to get to the bottom rung of the podium. Clarke drove his 1994 Acura Integra to wins in six of the eight events he entered in the Mini Stock division at Cornwall Motor Speedway and Brockville Ontario Speedway in 2020.