The NASCAR team will paint the car in honor of Jim Clark

      On May 31, 1965, Jim Clark, driving a Lotus car with a Ford engine, won the classic Indy 500 race, becoming the only one in the history of motorsport who managed to combine this achievement with winning the Formula 1 title in one season.

      In memory of the victory of the outstanding Scottish racing driver, the Wood Brothers Racing team, competing in the NASCAR Cup, the highest league of this series, decided to paint their Ford Mustang No. 21 in the same green-yellow color scheme that distinguished Lotus cars in those days.

      Moreover, this action has an absolutely serious historical justification: the fact is that the Wood Brothers team then, half a century ago, provided technical support to Team Lotus, and its team working with Jim Clark's car included the Wood brothers themselves – Glenn, Leonard, Delano and Ray Lee.

      They founded their team 15 years before this event, and it was competing in NASCAR even then. Their ability to make pit stops quickly and accurately was one of the key factors that determined Clark's victory – along with the skill of the driver himself, of course.

      The Wood Brothers team unveiled a commemorative paint job for their car at a special ceremony held at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, where the very Lotus car used by Jim Clark in the Indy 500 is also on display.

      Nowadays, this team is led by the children and grandchildren of its founders, and one of them, John Wood, president of Wood Brothers Racing, said in his speech: "This was a really interesting project that we worked on together with the team, trying to take into account all the nuances so that it accurately reflects such an important historical moment.

      This project is filled with a special meaning because of everything that connects our family with that victory in the Indy 500. Moreover, we present it in the Henry Ford Museum next to that very car. Putting our No. 21 Ford Mustang in the same colors is a great way to celebrate that victory, and I think the fans will appreciate it."

      One more thing is worth mentioning: on April 6, car No. 21, painted in this historic color scheme, will start the race at the oval circuit in Darlington, South Carolina. 60 years ago, it was at Darlington Raceway that the first conversation took place between a Ford Motor Company representative and Glenn Wood, when the Wood Brothers team was invited to join forces with Team Lotus and work during the Indy 500.

      In 2025, Josh Berry is playing for Wood Brothers, who distinguished himself last Sunday by winning the race at the oval circuit in Las Vegas, winning 101 victories for the team in its history.