Ricciardo: “I need to get some points on the board”

By Apr 1, 2014, 1:30 PM EDT
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No word on whether or not Red Bull Racing’s Daniel Ricciardo has opted to buy a rabbit’s foot on his way to this weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix, but at this point, it probably wouldn’t hurt.

Ricciardo has put up great performances in his first two Grand Prix as counterpart to four-time defending World Champion Sebastian Vettel – only to be DQ’d after finishing second in Australia and then having another podium run in Malaysia ruined by a series of unfortunate events.

That chain began when Ricciardo was released from the pits on his final stop with the left front tire not properly attached. The team wheeled him back to his box and he lost a lap in the process. Adding salt to the wound, the FIA tagged Ricciardo with a 10-spot grid penalty for Bahrain after deeming the incident an unsafe release.

The fact that the endings to his races in Melbourne and Sepang have come down to bad luck and not him is probably cold comfort. With nothing to show for his hard work so far, Ricciardo appears to feel the urgency to leave the desert with a good points haul this weekend.

“In terms of aggression…Well, it’s not going to be any less,” Ricciardo said of his mindset going into Bahrain on Red Bull Racing’s web site. “I’m going to Bahrain thinking that I have to be starting 11th, and need an aggressive start to get me back into contention.

“I need to get some points on the board and that’s not going to happen if I’m cruising around in the middle of the pack. That said, I don’t think I need to change anything much. I think I’m driving with good intensity, so I don’t need to do anything dramatically different.”

As for the matter of catching Mercedes, it appears that Red Bull isn’t as far off as people were expecting them to be after their dismal preseason testing.

While Ricciardo found trouble late in Malaysia, Vettel was able to claim his first podium of the season with a third-place showing behind winner Lewis Hamilton and runner-up Nico Rosberg.

Ricciardo isn’t sure how the Bahrain International Circuit’s array of long straights will suit his and Vettel’s Renault-powered RB10s, but feels confident that the team can catch up to Merc when the series comes to tracks where downforce is more highlighted.

“I think the car itself, aerodynamically and mechanically, is competitive,” Ricciardo said. “We know we’re a little bit down on straightline speed and that really hurts somewhere like Sepang – though through Sector 2 [the twisty section], we were strong all weekend and on the pace of the Mercs.

“We’ll see how Bahrain treats us but once we get to China and – even better – Barcelona, I think we can really take the fight to them.”

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
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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).