Keep On Runnin’
On the heels of its Le Mans success, the Ford GT will keep racing into 2019
By Steve Turner
Photos courtesy of Ford Motor Company
Against all odds, Ford was able to go from announcing a new Ford GT to winning Le Mans on the 50th anniversary of the 1-2-3 GT-40 win in 1966 in just over a year. After that kind of success out of the gate, it would be shame not to see the car keep racing. Fortunately the powers that be at the Blue Oval agree.
“We wanted to make sure everyone knows that we are committed to sports car racing globally with WEC and IMSA,” Ford executive vice president and chief technical officer, Raj Nair said. “The stated goal of our Ford GT program was to win Le Mans, and we're very proud that we were able to do that in our first year. To commit to a full, four-year assault on both the IMSA and WEC championships shows how serious we are about taking Ford GT racing around the world.”
That commitment means we will see the EcoBoost-powered GT racing through the 2019 seasons in both IMSA and WEC competition.
“We’re excited and feel the extension of this Ford GT race program sends an important message to the industry and to enthusiasts that we are committed to global racing at Ford,” Dave Pericak, global director, Ford Performance, said. “But we remain committed to doing racing the right way. And the Ford GT program is a perfect example of how we are using our racing efforts to help improve the products that Ford consumers can drive every day. Developing the GT production car and the race car at the same time has been a challenging task for everyone, but it has also showed how the production vehicle side and racing side of Ford Performance can work together to benefit everyone.”
It will certainly be interesting to see what Ford and its racing teams can learn after a few years racing this supercar.
We will see the Ford GT racing in IMSA and WEC competition for at least three more seasons.
“We are in motorsport to win races and championships, but just as importantly we are using it to develop our engineering expertise and help develop advancements for production vehicles like EcoBoost engines, advanced aerodynamics and lightweight materials that consumers can use in Ford production vehicles going forward,” Raj Nair said.
