Jim Cornett could be best described as a racer's racer. The team of Jim and his wife Angela are popular with their fellow racers and racing fans alike in the four states region. The Jefferson, Texas-based team races "No Electronics" in the Ark-La-Tex area at tracks such as Red River Raceway, Hallsville Dragway, Paris Dragstrip, Prescott Raceway, and the Texas Motorplex in his tried and true Chevy II. He tries to race where the payout is the most that weekend and is very successful at it. He raced at Ennis at the bracket finals for Paris Dragstrip and will be racing for Red River at the IHRA Bracket Finals. 

His track record speaks for itself. He has finished second in points this year at Red River Raceway while only competing in half the races. In 1997 he won the "No Electronics" championship at Hallsville Raceway and was voted Racer of the Year by his fellow racers. In 1996 he was second place in points losing to Lester Hayes and his trick EFI 65 Falcon in a contest that went down to final race of the year. Lester won that battle by only two rounds in the end.

Jim has been racing since the age of sixteen where he debuted in Street Eliminator. He has been racing the 1964 Chevy II for 16 years now and is a threat to win anywhere he goes. This is due to the consistency of his driving and a car he knows inside and out. He raced his car with brother John for years until he married Angela. Then she became his racing partner. 

Jim is not a stranger to adversity. When he blew the engine in his car, he called on his fellow racers and friends Danny Doyle Sr. and Jr. to let him use an engine that was meant for another car. They agreed and at the IHRA World Finals in Gilliam, he delivered a win in No Electronics. He averaged a.522 reaction time for the whole race. He even left on a Super Pro car with a.503 reaction time in the bracket ET runoff but lost the race due to tire spin.

The year 2000 will mean a big change for the Cornett Racing Team when they debut a dragster purchased from Tom Stansfield of Palestine, Texas. The Chevy II will still be the main race car while Jim gets used to the driving the dragster in gambler's races at Gilliam. He also has another Chevy II at the house he is building for Angela. Angela plans on running in "No Electronics" as well as photographing race cars in her spare time.

Jim Cornett would like to thank the following people without whom it would not be possible for him to race: his father Jimmy Cornett, his brother John "Jon Jon" Cornett, and his wife Angela. Jim also wishes to thank these others: Competition racers Steve & Stuart Smith from Atlanta, Adger Smith of Texarkana, who is recovering from a serious accident in Cordova, Illinois, and longtime Hallsville racers Danny Doyle Sr. and Jr., who let Jim borrow the engine meant for their dragster so he could finish out the year.

When you are at a race in the Ark-La-Tex area, stop by and say hello! Jim is always in a good mood and has never met a stranger.