For James Klimas, Toyota is more than just a car manufacturer. The Klimas family has owned and operated Middletown Toyota in Middletown, Connecticut, since 1975—the same year the Skip Barber Racing School was founded. For 50 years, the dealership and Klimas family have proudly served central Connecticut. With such a strong connection to the Toyota brand, the announcement of the Toyota GR Cup North America caught the attention of Klimas and his family. James made his debut in the series at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway—the finale of the 2023 season—ahead of a full-season campaign with Skip Barber Racing in 2024. Klimas’ No. 61 Toyota GR Cup car featured a bespoke set of hand controls developed by Toyota Gazoo Racing, allowing James—who does not have the use of his left arm—to race competitively. Throughout the 2024 season, Klimas’ pace steadily improved as he worked closely with instructors from the Skip Barber Racing School. Meanwhile, Toyota, Skip Barber, and James collaborated to enhance the reliability of the hand-control system. That hard work paid off at Barber Motorsports Park, where Klimas gained seven positions to earn his season-best finish. 
With the 2024 season in the books and a reformatted TC America powered by Skip Barber Racing on the horizon, Klimas and the team turned their focus to the touring car ranks. Still loyal to the Toyota brand, Klimas transitioned to the new Toyota GR Corolla TC, which had just rolled off the production line and was ready to make its TC America debut in 2025. With the combination of a new Toyota and a newly restructured TC America series, Klimas moved from one side of the SRO America paddock to the other, making his touring car debut at Sonoma Raceway. “The key for us at Skip Barber Racing is to set reachable goals, meet them, and then set our eyes on the next target,” explained Skip Barber Racing Team Manager Joe Monitto. “With James, that process was rapid. Our instructors work with James to select a goal, guide him toward it, and put him in a position to achieve it—and he did, at seemingly every opportunity.” Through the first four races of the 2025 season, Klimas’ best finish was a top-ten at Circuit of the Americas. The reformatted TC America series features no sub-classes, meaning a wide variety of cars must be balanced against one another. With limited data on the new GR Corolla TC, both the sanctioning body and teams are still learning the car’s capabilities. 
Just as they did in 2024, Klimas and the team are hard at work, executing an intensive testing and development program during the first half of the 2025 season. Having completed sessions at VIRginia International Raceway, Sebring International Raceway, and New Jersey Motorsports Park, the team is rapidly learning the ins and outs of the GR Corolla TC. As new goals are set, a podium finish appears to be the next target for the No. 61 Middletown Toyota GR Corolla TC team in 2025. To follow James’ 2025 season, check him out on Instagram, or follow Skip Barber Racing School on Instagram and Facebook.
With the 2024 season in the books and a reformatted TC America powered by Skip Barber Racing on the horizon, Klimas and the team turned their focus to the touring car ranks. Still loyal to the Toyota brand, Klimas transitioned to the new Toyota GR Corolla TC, which had just rolled off the production line and was ready to make its TC America debut in 2025. With the combination of a new Toyota and a newly restructured TC America series, Klimas moved from one side of the SRO America paddock to the other, making his touring car debut at Sonoma Raceway. “The key for us at Skip Barber Racing is to set reachable goals, meet them, and then set our eyes on the next target,” explained Skip Barber Racing Team Manager Joe Monitto. “With James, that process was rapid. Our instructors work with James to select a goal, guide him toward it, and put him in a position to achieve it—and he did, at seemingly every opportunity.” Through the first four races of the 2025 season, Klimas’ best finish was a top-ten at Circuit of the Americas. The reformatted TC America series features no sub-classes, meaning a wide variety of cars must be balanced against one another. With limited data on the new GR Corolla TC, both the sanctioning body and teams are still learning the car’s capabilities. Just as they did in 2024, Klimas and the team are hard at work, executing an intensive testing and development program during the first half of the 2025 season. Having completed sessions at VIRginia International Raceway, Sebring International Raceway, and New Jersey Motorsports Park, the team is rapidly learning the ins and outs of the GR Corolla TC. As new goals are set, a podium finish appears to be the next target for the No. 61 Middletown Toyota GR Corolla TC team in 2025. To follow James’ 2025 season, check him out on Instagram, or follow Skip Barber Racing School on Instagram and Facebook.