Chili Bowl winner Abreu making major inroads in NASCAR

By Jan 20, 2015, 1:53 PM EST
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Several hours after winning the biggest race of his life, Rico Abreu realized he’d arrived at the same time his plane did in Chicago.

“When we landed, they announced on the plane that the Chili Bowl Nationals winner is on this flight,” Abreu said Tuesday morning during a conference call with the news media. “They actually said, ‘Rich Abreu’ and then they said, ‘Rico,’ and everyone started laughing.”

Abreu certainly could take it in stride, having emerged over the last 72 hours as the newest sensation in auto racing.

After Abreu wowed an audience filled with NASCAR luminaries Saturday night in becoming the 18th winner of the prestigious Chili Bowl Nationals in Tulsa, Okla., the whirlwind continued Tuesday with the announcement that he will run the full K&N Pro Series East Series this season with HScott Motorsports.

He hadn’t sat in a stock car until piloting a Late Model in a parking lot Monday, and he will mark his debut in a Super Late Model race Saturday at New Smyrna (Fla.) Speedway before the K&N Pro Series season opener Feb. 15 at the same track (NBC Sports will broadcast the event).

https://twitter.com/JMarksDE/status/557585672505397248/photo/1

Though he will be new to NASCAR, Abreu ingratiated himself with several movers and shakers last week in Tulsa.

Among the many well-wishers were Tony Stewart, Danica Patrick, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Roger Penske.

“I never thought this day would come,” Abreu, 22, said. “It’s one of the biggest wins in my career. One I’ll never forget.”

The Rutherford, Calif., native’s story is a memorable one. Standing 4-foot-4 and weighing 95 pounds, Abreu uses foot blocks to reach the accelerator when he runs in sprint and midget series cars.

He has worked closely with NASCAR to ensure similar modifications would be allowed in the car, using spacers behind the seat to position him closer to the steering wheel and pedals.

“All modifications are really simple, nothing way off radar, and it’s really safe,” he said. “My whole goal was going to New Smyrna and getting laps and making sure I’m comfortable in the race car. You have to be 100 percent in these race cars, and you can’t lose concentration about being uncomfortable. That’s my biggest thing this weekend is being in the comfort zone, making sure everything is right and getting as many laps as I can.

“The pedals are mounted right underneath the dashboard, and it’s moved closer to reach electronics. You look at the cockpit, and it’s hard to tell the difference. The only difference is sitting a lot closer, and the pedals are closer. The adjustments aren’t that bad. NASCAR came and said everything looks safe.”

Though the timing of Tuesday’s news was fortuitous, the wheels have been in motion for a few months to bring Abreu to NASCAR after he notched 26 victories across sprint and USAC midget races last year and also won a national championship.

He is following in the footsteps of Chip Ganassi Racing driver and fellow California native Kyle Larson, who also is one of Abreu’s closest friends. It was Larson, who introduced Abreu to Stewart (who already has promised to help shuttle Abreu between Dover, Del., and Mechanicsburg, Pa., in late May so he can race K&N and sprint cars on the same weekend).

“I’ve known Kyle the last six years, and I consider him a brother,” Aberu said. “His parents could be my mom and dad with how close I am to his family and him. Kyle is the one I look up to and go to more than anything because of the close friendship and relationship together. The people I’ve met through Kyle with Tony and Kasey. There’s so many drivers I can go to for support and that will support me. My confidence is so high, and I’m really looking forward to it. I don’t think I’m going to have too many problems to deal with it.”

Besides the 14 K&N races, Abreu plans to fill the rest of his schedule with dirt-track events. “I think I’m more than capable of running 110 to 120” total races, he said, noting that Larson ran 130 times while winning the K&N East title in 2012.

Abreu is a relative newcomer to racing, having begun his career only a few years ago.

“When I grew up, I played sports, wrestled in middle school, then all my friends and classmates outgrew me, and I was limited to what I could do,” he said. “I became a big race fan. I didn’t even think I could race until I did it for the first time let alone be competitive so quickly in my career. It’s just so cool to see that people really believe in you and like to see you achieve.

“A lot of people believe in me, and it gives me a lot of confidence and humbled me. I’m glad people can see who I am. They don’t judge me for what I look like or why I’m doing it. I’m doing it because I’m a racer and love the sport.”

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).