Ford Working Flat Out on Mustang Inspired Le Mans Hypercar
A year since announcing the program, Ford is flat out preparing for its Mustang inspired return to the top class of the Le Mans 24 Hour.
A year since announcing the program, Ford is flat out preparing for its Mustang inspired return to the top class of the Le Mans 24 Hour. Like it went on to dominate the classic race sixty years ago, the Blue Oval’s target will be to beat current triple-winners Ferrari when Ford returns to the World Endurance Championship in 2027.
And Ford is not playing games as preparations continue flat out for that comeback. “One year ago, we promised to return to top flight endurance racing,” Ford Racing Hypercar program manager Dan Sayers confirmed this week. “Today, we are exactly 12 months away from being on the grid.”
That is a heart-stopping timeframe. To build a Hypercar program from a blank sheet of paper to a Le Mans start line in just two years is, by any objective measure, ambitious. But Ford Racing is making it possible. “We spent the last year in the trenches,” Sayers continues. “The soul of this machine is starting to roar.
Mustang Inspired Hypercar Will Have a Coyote V8
“That soul is the engine. It’s more than just a component; it’s the identity of the car. When you hear a Ford coming down the Mulsanne Straight at three in the morning, you shouldn’t have to look at the badge to know what it is. That’s why we’re using the Coyote.
“Our Hypercar will be powered by our naturally aspirated 5.4-liter V8, a powerplant that already defines our Dark Horse R, GT4, and GT3 program. We do not need alternatives. We leaned into our DNA. This V8 also bridges the legends of 1966 with the future of 2027. It will be developed entirely in-house at Dearborn, working Red Bull Ford Powertrains to marry high-voltage technology to Detroit brawn.”
Sayers also confirmed Ford’s core Hypercar driver force for 2027. “The new Ford Hypercar needs more than just engineering. It requires a specific kind of driver. One who’s as much a scientist as he is a racer. We have found them in Sebastian Priaulx, Mike Rockenfeller, and Logan Sargeant.
Rockenfeller, Priaulx, Sargeant Confirmed as Drivers
“Seb is a pure, natural talent and Rocky the veteran who has seen and won it all. Both are already part of the Ford family and have proven the Mustang’s GT3 mettle by winning in IMSA. Logan comes to us fresh from Formula 1. He brings a level of technical sophistication and high-downforce experience that’s vital to our program.
Having an American back in a Ford at Le Mans is a nod to giants like Dan Gurney and AJ Foyt who showed what happens when American grit meets global ambition in 1967.”
To prepare, Ford will run Priaulx and Rockenfeller in the 2026 European Le Mans LMP2 Series to also learn and build the team and refine its processes. “We have the drivers, we have the vision and we are building more than just a car; we are building a legacy,” Sayers concludes. “We are America’s Race Team, and we are coming for the world!”
Images: Ford Racing
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