Ray had education at both Slough Grammar School and then a five year engineering apprenticeship, which started with a year working for Bill Lacey, who was mainly a motorcycle engine tuner, but whom also looked after Coventry Climax Formula One 1-and-a-half and 2-and-a-half litre engines. Ray then met and worked with Mike Hailwood as Lacey prepared his engines. After a spell of self-employment, Stokoe then spent time with Rolls Royce and then Martin Slater and his Lyncar operation, designing and manufacturing a successful Formula Atlantic car for John Nicholson to drive. Ray did this in his spare time, including building the moulds and fibreglass bodywork, as by then he was working for McLaren. Ray worked heavily with Gordon Coppuck at McLaren and was involved with the M23 Formula 1 car, the M8 Can-Am car, the M13 Indycar and the M21 Formula 2 car. After spells with JW Automotive who were running Gulf Porsche sportscars and Williams in their fledging Formula 1 days, Ray moved to Germany where he worked with Volkswagen. He then returned to work with Slater and Lyncar in 1977, with special focus on the Hesketh sportscar. Ray then had another spell of self-employment in England, Germany and Canada, before working flat-out with Benetton developing their B186 turbo-engined Formula 1 car. Stokoe then joined up with another old friend, Gordon Coppuck, to work on a Indycar for March, which then led to him working with Leyton House in Formula 1. Ray was there in the design department when a certain Adrian Newey joined as a chief engineer. The two worked very closely together; Adrian doing wind-tunnel work and Ray covering the rear of the car. Stokoe moved to Indycars to do a similar role in transmission, engine and suspension work. Ray then joined X-Trac, specialising in their six speed gearbox that Toyota and Nissan used for Japanese sportscars, but also a six-speed transaxle for the Michelotto Ferrari F40 and four-wheel drive transmission for the Opel DTM cars. Ray then joined Malcolm Wilson's Ford Rallysport team concentrating on the Ford Focus, and his work led to a win for the team in the 1999 Safari Rally with Colin McRae. After another spell of self-employment when Wilson relocated to Cumbria, Ray more or less retired in 2002, but still gets involved with anything he finds interesting and keeps links with the sport, now largely being based in Germany.

Biography last updated 30 Mar 2016