The debut of the all-new seventh-generation Ford Mustang Dark Horse has driven The Blue Oval’s motorsports efforts, influencing its racing machines across a wide range of disciplines in stock car, road, and sports car racing. With the news that a Ford prototype is headed for the track for the first time in decades, some might assume that the forthcoming race car will be based on the Mustang, but that’s not likely to be the case.
While the Ford prototype is well under development, Ford Performance head, Mark Rushbrook, has been keeping its finer details under wraps thus far. In an interview with Racer, Rushbrook stated that the automaker will spend 2025 “virtually” designing the Ford prototype racer, and track testing will begin in 2026 before its 2027 competition debut. The design is still in its initial stages, but it’s not going to be a Mustang based race car. But even though it won’t look like the Mustang, Rushbrook says it will be unmistakably Ford.
“It’s still up in the air,” Rushbrook said of the Ford prototype design. “We just want to be seen as Ford.”
Ford has also already selected a chassis supplier from the list of four that conform to the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) LMDh specifications, but hasn’t specified which one. The Ford prototype compete in the LMDh class because the automaker felt it had a better shot at winning in that division, which enables teams to use a higher percentage of “off-the-shelf” parts rather than building the vehicle from scratch.
At this time, while Ford Performance has confirmed plans to race internationally in the FIA WEC, it’s not clear if the manufacturer will choose to compete in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship as part of the GTP division on North American soil.
Whatever Ford Performance brings to the prototype racing scene is sure to be a winner. During 2024, The Blue Oval raked in over 50 wins across all manner of motorsport, from NASCAR to Formula Drift and Australian Supercars. The automaker is also speeding toward its 2026 entry into Formula One, and is already 3D printing parts for Red Bull Racing.
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