Friday of the 24h of Le Mans is a day off on the track for the protagonists of the most famous race in the world, but not off it since everyone always takes advantage of it to bring something new.
And so, after the Alpine LMDh and the Toyota Hydrogen, it is the turn of Ford Mustang which has unveiled its brand new Mustang Dark Horse which will debut in the championship in 2024.
The car developed by Ford Performance, Multimatic and M-Sport in recent months, as known, is based on the 5.4-liter Coyote V8 engine and the first team that has chosen it is Proton Competition to take part in the FIA World Endurance Championship and obviously at the 24h of Le Mans.
The American House car also features the new blue-purple-red-orange color scheme and the Ford Performance logo created by designer Troy Lee, ready to take on the legacy of the Ford GT that triumphed on the Circuit de la Sarthe in the LMGTE Class a few year ago.
Ford Mustang GT3
Photo by: Ford Performance
“Ford and Le Mans are linked by history and now we will return to racing the most dramatic, rewarding and important race in the world – says Jim Farley, CEO of Ford Motor Company – It is no longer about Ford against Ferrari. It is Ford against everyone. Come back Le Mans is the start of building a global motorsports business with Mustang, just like we are doing with the Bronco and Raptor off-road.”
Seen on the Sebring track a few months ago, the Mustang GT3 was refined in detail by the meticulous work of Multimatic – already behind the Ford GT project – and M-Sport, which worked on the engine, mounting custom-made short and long arm suspensions , rear transaxle gearbox, carbon fiber bodywork and a unique aerodynamic package developed on GT3 regulations.
Ford Mustang GT3
Photo by: Ford Performance
“For a project like the Mustang GT3, we’ve turned to two of our most trusted collaborators in motorsports to help bring this vehicle and this program to life,” said Mark Rushbrook, director of Ford Performance Motorsports. all as excited as Ford fans when the Mustang starts racing at the top level of GT racing in 2024.”
Proton Competition will have two Mustang GT3s for the Endurance World Championship, which from next year will switch to the LMGT3 Class in place of the GTEs, while the debut is expected in the IMSA SportsCar Championship for the 24h of Daytona in January, where Ford Performance will enter two cars in GTD PRO class maintained by Multimatic Motorsports.
“This is a very important program and an exciting time for our company – comments Proton Competition team principal, Christian Ried – Mustang is a great brand and this is an important step for our team. We can’t wait to join to Ford starting in 2024”.
Ford Mustang GT3
Photo by: Ford Performance
