Homestead Update: Kenseth up front, but Johnson not far behind

By Nov 17, 2013, 4:50 PM EST
0 Comments

Pole sitter Matt Kenseth is doing all he can do to erase a 28-point deficit to Sprint Cup championship leader Jimmie Johnson, but the five-time Cup champ is in the midst of a Top-5 effort in today’s season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

As of the halfway point (Lap 134 of 267), Kenseth had paced all but nine laps of the Ford Ecoboost 400 and was holding a narrow lead over Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Denny Hamlin. Johnson, though, was running in fifth.

After leading the first 12 laps, Kenseth gave up the point to bring most of the leaders to pit road under caution. He won the race off pit road ahead of Kevin Harvick, but Denny Hamlin chose not to pit and brought the field to the restart at Lap 15.

The front-runners quickly disposed of Hamlin and after a brief tussle with Kevin Harvick, Kenseth got back in front at Lap 16. Meanwhile, Johnson was also progressing from his starting position of seventh and was in the runner-up spot when the yellow came out for a Travis Kvapil spin at Lap 24.

The leaders once again took advantage of the caution to pit for fresh rubber, and Harvick used a two-tire stop to get out ahead of the pack. Johnson dropped a few spots after taking four tires, but did come out ahead of Kenseth (who also took four tires), who also grabbed four.

David Ragan took the field back to green at Lap 27, but was dispatched by Kurt Busch almost immediately for the lead, with Kenseth, Kyle Busch and Johnson getting past Harvick on the restart. On Lap 32, Kenseth once again moved to P1, leaving the Busch brothers and Johnson to race for second.

Johnson would win the fight and once again, the top two Chase contenders were 1-2 on the pylon. Kenseth’s lead stabilized around one to 1.5 seconds, but while that was happening, Jeff Gordon – the defending champion of this Homestead race – had already made his way into the Top 5 by Lap 50 after starting 26th.

Green flag stops had begun around Lap 66 before the yellow came out at Lap 68 for debris. On the subsequent pit stops, Kenseth and Johnson were able to maintain their first and second positions, and shortly after the race resumed at Lap 73, the two proceeded to scrap on the track for the top spot.

But after a bit of nose-to-tail action, Kenseth won out and Johnson settled into second once again until Lap 88, when Kyle Busch got by him to put Joe Gibbs Racing in the top two spots. Shortly after that, caution No. 4 was triggered by a Turn 2 spin involving Dave Blaney – one of several drivers that may be saying goodbye to Sprint Cup racing this afternoon.

Another yellow meant another set of stops, which ended with Kyle Larson getting out ahead of Kenseth and Kyle Busch – but only because he missed his pit stall (he had to return a second time for service). As a result, Kenseth and Kyle Busch were atop the leaderboard at the Lap 95 restart.

At Lap 98, Denny Hamlin continued his recovery from a tough start to the race by dusting Kyle Busch for second. Johnson then came up to try and make the low line work in a fight for third against “Rowdy,” and on Lap 104, he finally got the position.

But while Kenseth and Johnson raced at the front, Harvick continued to slide further into the pack and out of the Top 20 thanks to handling issues on his car. A snippet of Harvick’s radio communications (via Bob Pockrass of The Sporting News):

Eventually, Harvick had to pit from 25th place under green at Lap 117 for an air pressure adjustment and tires according to ESPN. He lost a lap in the process.

Ford unveils a new Mustang for 2024 Le Mans in motorsports ‘lifestyle brand’ retooling

Associated PressJun 9, 2023, 7:00 PM EDT
Ford Mustang Le Mans
Ford Performance
2 Comments

LE MANS, France — Ford has planned a return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans with its iconic Mustang muscle car next year under a massive rebranding of Ford Performance aimed at bringing the automotive manufacturer “into the racing business.”

The Friday unveil of the new Mustang Dark Horse-based race car follows Ford’s announcement in February (and a ballyhooed test at Sebring in March) that it will return to Formula One in 2026 in partnership with reigning world champion Red Bull.

The Mustang will enter the GT3 category next year with at least two cars in both IMSA and the World Endurance Championship, and is hopeful to earn an invitation to next year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. The IMSA entries will be a factory Ford Performance program run by Multimatic, and a customer program in WEC with Proton Competition.

Ford CEO Jim Farley, also an amateur sports car racer, told The Associated Press the Mustang will be available to compete in various GT3 series across the globe to customer teams. But more important, Farley said, is the overall rebranding of Ford Performance – done by renowned motorsports designer Troy Lee – that is aimed at making Ford a lifestyle brand with a sporting mindset.

“It’s kind of like the company finding its own, and rediscovering its icons, and doubling down on them,” Farley told the AP. “And then this motorsports activity is getting serious about connecting enthusiast customers with those rediscovered icons. It’s a big switch for the company – this is really about building strong, iconic vehicles with enthusiasts at the center of our marketing.”

Ford last competed in sports car racing in 2019 as part of a three-year program with Chip Ganassi Racing. The team scored the class win at Le Mans in 2016 in a targeted performance aimed to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Ford snapping Ferrari’s six-year winning streak.

Ford on Friday displayed a Mustang with a Lee-designed livery that showcased the cleaner, simplified look that will soon be featured on all its racing vehicles. The traditional blue oval with Ford Performance in white lettering underneath will now be branded simply FP.

The new mark will be used across car liveries, merchandise and apparel, display assets, parts and accessories and in advertising.

Farley cited Porsche as an automaker that has successfully figured out how to sell cars to consumers and race cars in various series around the world while creating a culture of brand enthusiasts. He believes Ford’s new direction will help the company sell street cars, race cars, boost interest in driving schools, and create a merchandise line that convinces consumers that a stalwart of American automakers is a hip, cool brand.

“We’re going to build a global motorsports business off road and on road,” Farley told the AP, adding that the design of the Mustang is “unapologetically American.”

He lauded the work of Lee, who is considered the top helmet designer among race car drivers.

“We’re in the first inning of a nine inning game, and going to Le Mans is really important,” Farley said. “But for customer cars, getting the graphics right, designing race cars that win at all different levels, and then designing a racing brand for Ford Performance that gets rebranded and elevated is super important.”

He said he’s kept a close eye on how Porsche and Aston Martin have built their motorsports businesses and said Ford will be better.

“We’re going in the exact same direction. We just want to be better than them, that’s all,” Farley said. “Second is the first loser.”

Farley, an avid amateur racer himself, did not travel to Le Mans for the announcement. The race that begins Saturday features an entry from NASCAR, and Ford is the reigning Cup Series champion with Joey Logano and Team Penske.

The NASCAR “Garage 56” entry is a collaboration between Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet and Goodyear, and is being widely celebrated throughout the industry. Farley did feel left out of the party in France – a sentiment NASCAR tried to avoid by inviting many of its partners to attend the race so that it wouldn’t seem like a Chevrolet-only celebration.

“They’re going right and I’m going left – that NASCAR thing is a one-year deal, right? It’s Garage 56 and they can have their NASCAR party, but that’s a one-year party,” Farley said. “We won Le Mans outright four times, we won in the GT class, and we’re coming back with Mustang and it’s not a one-year deal.

“So they can get all excited about Garage 56. I almost see that as a marketing exercise for NASCAR, but for me, that’s a science project,” Farley continued. “I don’t live in a world of science projects. I live in the world of building a vital company that everyone is excited about. To do that, we’re not going to do a Garage 56 – I’ve got to beat Porsche and Aston Martin and Ferrari year after year after year.”

Ford’s announcement comes on the heels of General Motors changing its GT3 strategy next season and ending its factory Corvette program. GM, which unlike Ford competes in the IMSA Grand Touring Prototype division (with its Cadillac brand), will shift fully to a customer model for Corvettes in 2024 (with some factory support in the IMSA GTD Pro category).