Ford Motor Co. in Dearborn has decided to operate its own Hypercar race team for the 2027 FIA World Endurance Championship season that includes the 24 Hours of Le Mans under the Ford Racing banner.
Automakers typically contract with professional race teams, such as Ford did with Multimatic Motorsports in Canada in recent years and with Shelby American in California in the 1960s.
“This gives us the ability to react more quickly on track, enhancing our competitiveness,” says Mark Rushbrook, global director of Ford Racing. “It also allows us to bring technology back to our road cars more effectively and efficiently than ever before.”
According to Rushbrook, Ford Racing will oversee and manage every aspect of its prototype sports car racing project, which will be led by motorsports veteran Dan Sayers. Ford intends to build its internal expertise to create a framework for long-term future success and knowledge that will find its way into customer programs of the future.
“Between now and the 2027 FIA World Endurance Championship season opening round, we will need to not only build the car itself but every part of the team as well,” Rushbrook says. “Every role needs to be filled and that is no small task because we aren’t just filling the positions, we are building a team culture which mirrors that of Ford Racing: passionate and driven by a need to be the best.
“We are filling dozens of roles in our design and engineering departments and our engine program,” says Rushbrook of the internal actions the company is making to prepare for 2027. “We are speaking to top development engineers and technicians to staff our testing and race programs. We are bringing in the leading mechanics and skilled racing trades people from around the world.”
Ford Racing will be utilizing its advanced racing facilities in Dearborn and Charlotte, N.C.; Red Bull Ford Powertrains and the automaker’s Hypercar facility in the U.K., as well as its chassis partner at Oreca, a French racecar manufacturer.
The Dearborn automaker also will receive technical and operational support from engineering and motorsport consultancy group Venture Global Engineering in Sterling Heights.
“While we bring these partners in, we are proud that this is very much a Ford Racing effort,” Rushbrook says. “In our ranks we have the leading minds of motorsports and we are building … quickly and systematically.”
