Jim Clark is a racing driver from United Kingdom who last raced in Formula 1 for Lotus-Ford. Clark is a two-time champion (1963, 1965), with 25 wins and 32 podiums from 72 starts.[1]
A Racer Rating of 5,692 ranks Clark 142th of 15,348 indexed drivers, on an Elo scale where the strongest reach the low five figures. It is built from every indexed race in the driver's file, decayed for time since their last race.
| 1968-01-01 | Kyalami | P1 | +102 |
| Season | Series | Team | Races | Wins | Podiums | DNFs | Poles | Points | Pos | Gain/Loss | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | ▸Formula 1 | Lotus-Ford | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 9 | P11 | +102 | 6,585 |
| 1967 | ▸Formula 1 | Lotus-Ford | 11 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 41 | P3 | −26 | 6,483 |
| 1966 | ▸Formula 1 | Lotus-BRM | 8 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 16 | P6 | −197 | 6,509 |
| 1965 | ▸Formula 1 | Lotus-Climax | 9 | 6 | 6 | 2 | 6 | 54 | P1 | +203 | 6,706 |
| 1964 | ▸Formula 1 | Lotus-Climax | 10 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 32 | P3 | −111 | 6,503 |
| 1963 | ▸Formula 1 | Lotus-Climax | 10 | 7 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 73 | P1 | +1,030 | 6,614 |
| 1962 | ▸Formula 1 | Lotus-Climax | 9 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 30 | P3 | +317 | 5,584 |
| 1961 | ▸Formula 1 | Lotus-Climax | 8 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 11 | P7 | +275 | 5,266 |
| 1960 | ▸Formula 1 | Team Lotus | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 8 | P8 | +191 | 4,991 |
| Rival | Rating | Raced | Ahead | Behind | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🇬🇧 Graham Hill | 5,097 | 32 | 22 | 10 | 69% |
| 🇦🇺 Jack Brabham | 5,211 | 29 | 20 | 9 | 69% |
| 🇳🇿 Bruce McLaren | 5,136 | 29 | 19 | 10 | 66% |
| 🇬🇧 John Surtees | 4,899 | 27 | 18 | 9 | 67% |
| 🇺🇸 Dan Gurney | 4,902 | 26 | 16 | 10 | 62% |
| 🇸🇪 Jo Bonnier | 4,402 | 26 | 19 | 7 | 73% |
| 🇺🇸 Richie Ginther | 5,503 | 25 | 18 | 7 | 72% |
| 🇨🇭 Jo Siffert | 5,058 | 22 | 20 | 2 | 91% |
| 🇬🇧 Innes Ireland | 4,610 | 18 | 13 | 5 | 72% |
| 🇺🇸 Phil Hill | 4,199 | 16 | 8 | 8 | 50% |
Jim Clark was a British Formula 1 driver who competed in the sport between 1960 and 1968, winning two World Drivers' Championships in 1963 and 1965 with Lotus. His 72 career starts produced 25 wins and 32 podiums, with an average finishing position of third. This record places him among the strongest drivers of his era; his Racer Rating of 5,692 reflects a driver who dominated his competitive field at the championship level.[1]
Clark's superiority over his peers is evident in sustained head-to-head records against the best drivers of his time. He finished ahead of Graham Hill, a three-time champion, in 22 of their 32 shared races; he beat three-time champion Jack Brabham 20 times in 29 encounters; and he had winning records against Bruce McLaren, John Surtees and Dan Gurney across multiple seasons. Even against stronger drivers who emerged later in his career, such as three-time champion Jackie Stewart, Clark managed six victories in their meetings. His partnership with Lotus, which fielded him for 52 of his 72 starts, produced 22 of the team's race wins across its entire history, demonstrating the scale of Clark's individual contribution to the marque's success.[2]
Clark's career ended with his retirement in 1968, concluding a nine-season run at the sport's highest level during an era when drivers competed across multiple categories; his achievement in winning the Indianapolis 500 in 1965 as the first non-American victor in nearly five decades underscored his standing as one of the most complete racing drivers of his generation.