Jimmy Mooring never drove a race car. He never called pit strategy or changed a tire. What he did was show up, every weekend, with his own money, for a sport he loved. In the CARS Tour garage, that meant everything. On Sunday evening, June 28, 2026, Mooring passed away at his home in Goldsboro, North Carolina. He was 80.
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“The CARS Tour is saddened to learn of the passing of longtime team owner and friend, Jimmy Mooring. Jimmy’s dedication to the sport through JM Racing was remarkable. His presence in the garage and passion for short track racing will be deeply missed by many,” CARS Tour made the statement on their X page.
The CARS Tour is saddened to learn of the passing of longtime team owner and friend, Jimmy Mooring.
Jimmy’s dedication to the sport through JM Racing was remarkable. His presence in the garage and passion for short track racing will be deeply missed by many.
Our thoughts and… pic.twitter.com/ACFPlxwDs5
— CARS Tour (@CARSTour) June 30, 2026
He went peacefully, surrounded by family. A public service followed on July 1. He was buried privately at Snow Hill Cemetery in North Carolina.
In 2020, JM Racing won the CARS Late Model Stock Tour Championship with Jared Fryar driving. That is the trophy, but the real story is everything around it.
Mooring’s team put cars on track for Stacy Puryear, Landon Huffman, and Sarah Cornett-Ching. In short-track racing, where budgets are thin and seats are hard to come by, getting that call from a team owner can change a career. Mooring made those calls.
People in the NASCAR pit lane respected him for it. He had a sharp mind and no ego about it. He just wanted good racing and good people around him. His obituary said it best.
“Blessed with a vibrant, outgoing personality, Jimmy truly loved people and never met a stranger. His magnetic nature and sharp mind served him well throughout a lifetime of diverse entrepreneurial ventures.”
He is survived by his wife Joyce, son Jim and his wife Kathey, daughter Macie, grandchildren Austin and Jaylen, and siblings Brenda and Todd.
That sharp mind, though, was forged long before racing ever entered the picture.
Mooring grew up farming in Greene County, North Carolina. Hard work was not a concept there. It was just life. When he moved on from the land, he took that same energy into business, construction, real estate, appliance sales, and auto dealerships.
Jimmy Mooring was self-made, straightforward, and completely at home in a racing garage. The sport is quieter without him.