Edsel B. Ford II – the great-grandson of Henry Ford – is not only an obvious Blue Oval fan that has a pretty impressive car collection of his own, but he’s also had a tremendous impact on the automaker over the years. In that regard, Ford II has served as a prominent ambassador for the sport of auto racing across the globe, and is often called the “Godfather” of FoMoCo’s racing efforts as well. As such, it’s only fitting that Edsel B. Ford II recently received the distinguished honor of being named a Bob Russo Heritage Award winner at the 2024 Induction Ceremony for the Motorsport Hall of Fame of America.
The Bob Russo Heritage Award is the Motorsport Hall of Fame’s second-highest honor – aside only from induction – and is named in recognition of the longtime motorsports journalist and historian. The MSHFA Board of Directors hands out this award to individuals whose contributions to motorsports are significant, and in the case of Ford II, it’s a deserving one, too. After spending his youth attending racing events, traveling the SCCA Trans Am circuit, and cleaning transmission parts for Carroll Shelby’s race team, Edsel B. Ford II went on to have a tremendous influence within the halls of The Blue Oval, too.
Once he started his career at Ford in 1974, Ford II served in various roles in product planning, marketing, and sales, including a stint as President of Ford Australia, where he became involved in the Supercars racing world, and as head of Lincoln-Mercury Division marketing, where he kicked off the Roush Racing sports car efforts with the Capri, Merkur XR4Ti, and Cougar. Ford II has also been credited for helping bring the Ford Quality Care and Ford Credit brands to NASCAR, and was also influential in bringing Robert Yates and Jack Roush together to form Roush Yates Engines.
“Outside of my family, the sport of motor racing has been one of the great passions of my life and to be honored by the MSHFA in this way is humbling,” Ford II said. “I have said many times that the sport produces such amazing people and personalities, and it’s been my honor to have been around so many of the people who have been inducted into this Hall of Fame, and, better yet, to consider so many of them my friends.”
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