James Ince (born November 24, 1970) is an American

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...

crew chief. He served as crew chief for various teams such as

Roush Racing Roush is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: Politics *Glenn Roush (1934–2020), American politician in Montana * J. Edward Roush (1920–2004), United States Representative for Indiana, namesake of: ** J. Edward Roush Lake, a re ...

Tyler Jet Motorsports Tyler Jet Motorsports was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series team. History Tyler Jet Motorsports was owned by Tim Beverley, owner of the airplane sales company that shared a name with the race team, and was formed in 1998 after Beverley purchased the a ...

MB2 Motorsports MB2 Motorsports was a NASCAR Cup Series team based in Mooresville, North Carolina, near the sport's hub in Charlotte. The team was founded by Read Morton, Tom Beard, and Nelson Bowers, from which the original team name were named after. Bowers w ...

, and MBV Racing.

Career

Born in

Springfield, Missouri Springfield is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County. The city's population was 169,176 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Springfield metropolitan area, which had an estimat ...

, Ince was a farmer when his career started in 1991 in the

Winston Racing Series The NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series (formerly the Whelen All-American Series, Winston Racing Series and the Dodge Weekly Series) is a points championship for NASCAR sanctioned local short track motor racing around the United States and Ca ...

with Larry Phillips, and the following two seasons, the two won 70 of 80 races, and won two consecutive championships. In 1993, Ince worked with

Mark Martin Mark Anthony Martin (born January 9, 1959) is a retired American stock car racing driver. He has the second most wins all time in what is now the Xfinity Series with 49. He scored 40 Cup Series wins. He finished second in the NASCAR Cup Series st ...

in the

Busch Series The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...

, helping him win seven races; Ince also worked with Martin in the

Craftsman Truck Series The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck based stock cars. The series is one of th ...

, guiding him to a win at

North Wilkesboro Speedway North Wilkesboro Speedway is a short oval racetrack located on U.S. Route 421, about east of the town of North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, or 80 miles north of Charlotte. It measures and features a unique uphill backstretch and downhill fr ...

. In late 1996, Ince became the crew chief for

Winston Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. ...

driver

Ted Musgrave Theodore Musgrave (born December 18, 1955) is an American former stock car racing driver. Pre-NASCAR Musgrave's father, Elmer, was a famous short-track racer in the Midwest who raced for over 25 years at Soldier Field, O'Hare, Waukegan, and Wil ...

beginning at

Charlotte Motor Speedway Charlotte Motor Speedway (previously known as Lowe's Motor Speedway from 1999 to 2009) is a motorsport complex located in Concord, North Carolina, outside Charlotte. The complex features a quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing including th ...

. He held the position until he was replaced by

Joey Knuckles Joey may refer to: People *Joey (name) Animals * Joey (marsupial), an infant marsupial * Joey, a Blue-fronted Amazon parrot who was one of the Blue Peter pets Film and television * ''Joey'' (1977 film), an American film directed by Horace ...

in the 1998 race at

Michigan International Speedway Michigan International Speedway (MIS) is a moderate-banked D-shaped speedway located off U.S. Highway 12 on more than approximately south of the village of Brooklyn, in the scenic Irish Hills area of southeastern Michigan. The track is ...

. In 1999, Ince remained with Roush Racing when he became the crew chief for

Kevin Lepage Kevin Paul Lepage (born June 26, 1962) is a retired American professional stock car racing driver, who last drove in NASCAR in 2014. Racing career Early career Lepage spent the 1980s driving in both the Busch North series and the Vermont-based A ...

, but subsequently left the team. In 2000, Ince became the crew chief for

Johnny Benson Jr. Jonathan Thomas Benson Jr. (born June 27, 1963) is an American retired stock car racing driver and the son of former Michigan modified driver John Benson Sr. Benson has raced across NASCAR's three national series (Cup, Busch, Truck), and his c ...

, and despite being docked 108 points and $10,400 after winning a

Winston West The ARCA Menards Series West, formerly the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West, NASCAR AutoZone West Series, NASCAR Winston West Series and NASCAR Camping World West Series, is a regional stock car racing series owned and operated by the Automobile Racin ...

race at

Fontana Fontana may refer to: Places Italy *Fontana Liri, comune in the Province of Frosinone *Fontanafredda, comune in the Province of Pordenone *Fontanarosa, comune in the Province of Avellino *Francavilla Fontana, comune in the Province of Brindisi * ...

for unsanctioned parts in the team's

car, in the Cup Series, the duo recorded 13 top-five finishes and a win at

North Carolina Speedway Rockingham Speedway, formerly North Carolina Motor Speedway and later North Carolina Speedway is a racetrack located near Rockingham, North Carolina. It is also known as The Rock and previously hosted NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series, ...

in 2002, the first Cup victory for Ince. That same year, Ince, along with six other crew chiefs, were each fined $500 for violations at the

Pepsi 400 The Coke Zero Sugar 400 is an annual NASCAR Cup Series stock car race at Daytona International Speedway. First held in 1959, the event consists of 160 laps, , and is the second of two major stock car events held at Daytona on the Cup Series ci ...

. Also in 2002, Ince served as crew chief in the Busch Series for

Jerry Nadeau Gerald Nadeau (born September 9, 1970) is an American former stock car racer. He competed in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series. He started racing in karting before moving up to car racing, driving in the 12 Hours of Sebring, the European Formula Ford ...

. In 2003, Ince was fined $1,000 for violations at

Atlanta Motor Speedway Atlanta Motor Speedway (formerly known Atlanta International Raceway from 1960 to 1990) is a 1.54-mile entertainment facility in Hampton, Georgia, United States, 20 miles (32 km) south of Atlanta. It has annually hosted NASCAR Cup Series ...

, and later in the year, Ince missed the

Banquet 400 The Hollywood Casino 400 is a NASCAR Cup Series stock car race held at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kansas. This race is the second of ten races in the Cup Series playoffs; since 2022, it is the second race of the Round of 16. NBC has the r ...

due to personal reasons, and eventually requested for his release from the team. In 2004, Ince joined

Peak Fitness Racing {{Infobox former NASCAR team , name = Peak Fitness Racing , logo = , owners = Angela Sadler, Bryant Stith, Jeff Stec , series = Nextel Cup Series, Busch Series , drivers_champ = 0 , wins = 0 , number ...

with

Hermie Sadler Herman Marion Sadler III (born April 24, 1969) is a candidate for the newly redrawn Virginia State Senate District 17 and was a former American professional stock car racing driver, announcer, professional wrestling promoter, and autism advocate ...

as the driver. In 2005, it was reported that Ince will serve as crew chief for

PPI Motorsports PPI Motorsports was a race team which competed in CART, NASCAR and various off-road racing circuits. The team had one of the few remaining single car operations in NASCAR. Early years PPI stood for Precision Preparation, Inc., a company founded ...

driver

Bobby Hamilton Jr. Charles Robert Hamilton Jr. (born January 8, 1978) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He formerly competed in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series, Nationwide Series, and Camping World Truck Series. Early career When he was 15 ...

, and Ince remained with the team the following season when Hamilton was replaced by

Travis Kvapil Travis Wade Kvapil ( ; born March 1, 1976) is an American professional stock car driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series, driving the No. 1 Chevrolet Silverado for Beaver Motorsports. He was the 2003 NASCAR ...

. Ince unofficially retired after the 2006 season, but expressed plans to return as the general manager and Director of Race Operations of a Truck Series team in 2009.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ince, James 1970 births Living people Sportspeople from Springfield, Missouri NASCAR crew chiefs Farmers from Missouri