Ford, Ganassi riding high following three straight IMSA wins

By Jul 24, 2018, 9:30 AM EDT
Photo: Ford Chip Ganassi Racing
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Victory for Joey Hand and Dirk Mueller on Saturday’s Northeast Grand Prix from Lime Rock Park continued a hot summer stretch for the Ford Chip Ganassi Racing outfit.

Hand and Mueller, in their No. 66 Ford GT, previously won the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen on July 1. Teammates Ryan Briscoe and Richard Westbrook, winners of the Rolex 24 at Daytona back in January, also won at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park on July 8.

Combine all of that with the Hand/Mueller victory at Lime Rock Park last weekend, and it’s three wins in a row for Ford and Ganassi.

And Saturday’s win was particularly dramatic, as Hand had to close down a gap of 12 seconds to then leader Jan Magnussen, in the No. 3 Corvette C7.R For Corvette Racing.

Hand managed to get onto Mangussen’s back bumper as they worked through GT Daytona (GTD) traffic, and then had to outduel him in the final laps.

But, when Magnussen drifted wide onto the grass exiting the final corner, it was all Hand needed to seize control of the lead, and he cruised to victory from there.

“It’s just amazing,” said Hand after Saturday’s victory. “We knew (Lime Rock) was going to be about being around at the end.  We knew tire longevity was going to be key here, and you have to be impressed with Michelin and our tires.  They went the distance when we needed them to because I was 12 seconds down there, and that set of tires, we were hard on them.  I could see I was reeling him in (No. 3 Corvette).  He was struggling in traffic and I was making some moves in traffic that were really aggressive, including getting in a full-on battle with the leading GTD cars.  It’s the last stint and you have no choice.”

Mueller was equally as elated, particularly of what the win means in terms of the championship standings, a point he was sure to highlight.

“This Ford Chip Ganassi Racing team just impresses me, weekend to weekend,” said Mueller.  “It’s such a big family.  It’s great.  I feel a little bad for (Westbrook and Briscoe in the No. 67), since they had a little trouble there today, but this win means so much to me and the team.  It’s our first overall win as a team, and a big win in terms of the championship. ”

Indeed, Saturday’s win proved to be very significant in the GTLM title chase, as it vaulted Hand and Mueller into the GTLM lead. However, it is only by one point over Magnussen and Antonio Garcia, and their Ford/Ganassi teammates Westbrook and Briscoe are only one further point back in third.

In short, three points separate the top three in GTLM leaving Lime Rock Park. A Corvette lineup has won the last two GTLM driver’s championships, but three wins in a row, and four on the season, leave Ford and Ganassi poised with a pair of efforts in position to dethrone them.

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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).