Clay Jones stayed under the radar in the inaugural race for the Championship Auto Racing Series (CARS) Super Late Model Tour but that was not necessarily a bad thing for the 28-year-old from Goldsboro, North Carolina.
After recording a quiet but strong ninth place finish in the X-1R Performance Products 300 at Southern National Motorsports Park, Jones has all the confidence in the world that he can build on that and improve in the upcoming races. Next up for Jones is a stop at Orange County Speedway for the Orange Blossom 300, a race Jones feels he can score a top-five finish in.
“Curtis Venable has a lot of good equipment,” Jones said when reflecting on his performance at Southern National. “Our goal for that race was to not tear anything up and get a top-10. There were a lot of stout cars there and great guys. We learned a lot. Nobody’s been on that new tire. We did real good to come out with a top 10. We learned a lot to go into OCS with. We’re making a lot of changes. We’ll be better there. We’re going for a top-five. We’ve got to set new goals every week.”
Like Southern National, Orange County is not new to Jones. He has previous experience there in a Super Late Model racing. Several years ago, Jones raced at the Rougemont, North Carolina speed-plant in the Pro All Stars Series (PASS).
“Back when we had our old Super Late Model, we ran the PASS race there and ran pretty well,” Jones stated. “It’s a fun track. You can run at the bottom or at the top next to the wall. It has different grooves. I think it’s going to be a really exciting race.”
Jones’ top-10 finish was impressive in its own right but even more impressive when he is compared to the competition stacked up against him. The CARS Tour consists of an all-star ensemble of Super Late Model racers from all over the country. While Jones hopes a championship comes his way, he’s racing to have fun and he’s having fun racing.
“As long as we get good finishes week in and week out, a championship could come into play,” Jones remarked. “We’re doing the best we can and having fun. We’ve got a great group of guys. We had a blast at Southern National. They’re used to working on Late Model Stock Cars and it’s been years since we’ve messed with Super Late Model stuff. Everybody’s learning again and we’ve got a great group of guys and I think we’ll have a great run at Orange County.”
After Saturday’s Orange Blossom 300, Jones hopes to set his sights on the Jerry Moody Memorial. Jones raced for the late Jerry Moody in the UARA tour for a year and said he would love to support the marquee race being held on April 26th at Southern National Motorsports Park.
