GREATWORTH, U.K., April 29, 2019 – The Ford Chip Ganassi Racing team will compete in the penultimate round of the marathon FIA World Endurance Championship Super Season this weekend. The 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps is the final rehearsal before the Le Mans 24 Hours, and the perfect event to make final preparations for Le Mans as the rollercoaster-like Spa circuit is an uncompromising test of man and machine.
Both Ford Chip Ganassi Racing Ford GTs return to their regular two-man driver crews for Spa with Stefan Mücke (GER) and Olivier Pla (FRA) in the #66 Ford GT, and Andy Priaulx (GB) and Harry Tincknell (GB) in the #67 GT. They will be reunited with Billy Johnson (US) and Jonathan Bomarito (US) for the Le Mans 24 Hours.
“Spa is a great event for making sure you have everything in place for Le Mans,” said Mark Rushbrook, global director, Ford Performance Motorsports. “It is also an important race in its own right, so we go there with our eyes on the top step of the podium. We’ve gone through the highs and the lows at Spa, with wins, pole positions and a couple of big crashes. That’s what Spa is all about: it’s an all or nothing track.”
The 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps features twice in the current WEC calendar. The race opened the Super Season in May 2018 and the #66 Ford GT crew of Mücke, Pla and Johnson took victory in the GTE Pro class. Mücke made a decisive move for the lead at the first corner but the three drivers had to fight for every inch of asphalt throughout the six-hour race. Olivier Pla had everyone on their feet when he made the move of the race, passing a Porsche for the lead through the famous Eau Rouge in the final hour of the race.
2018 Spa Highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9b2KtLM2twY
“Last year’s race was a fun one for me,” Pla said. “To come out in front after racing that hard is the reason why we do this! The Ford GT suits Spa and we all love to race there, so it is the perfect challenge for us. I hope we can go back this year and have a repeat performance. We certainly have the car and the team to do so!”
The #67 Ford GT crew of Priaulx and Tincknell have unfinished business at Spa. Racing with Tony Kanaan in 2018 they qualified on pole position and were ready to fight for victory, but it all ended when Tincknell crashed at Raidillon in the second hour.
“It all started well at Spa last year,” Tincknell said. “We qualified on pole and it was all looking good until the crash, so I have a few demons to lay to rest the first time I go through Eau Rouge. We know the car is always quick around Spa and it is where we got our first WEC podium in 2016, so I have good memories of that. The reason the GT goes well at Spa is that you need a car with good aerodynamic efficiency. You always have to compromise as you want a low downforce set up for the fast parts of the track, but then there are some tight turns there, too. It’s like Le Mans where you want outright speed on the straights, but then you need some grip to get through the Porsche Curves.
“It’s good to go back to a track where we know we are strong, but it’s never easy at the front as the opposition is strong, too. It has been a tough season for us results-wise, but the pace, our strategy and the team effort has always been spot on.”
The 6 Hours of Spa-Franchorchamps underway on Saturday, May 4 at 13:30 CET.
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About Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is a global company based in Dearborn, Michigan. The company designs, manufactures, markets and services a full line of Ford cars, trucks, SUVs, electrified vehicles and Lincoln luxury vehicles, provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company and is pursuing leadership positions in electrification, autonomous vehicles and mobility solutions. Ford employs approximately 199,000 people worldwide. For more information regarding Ford, its products and Ford Motor Credit Company, please visit www.corporate.ford.com.
Ford of Europe is responsible for producing, selling and servicing Ford brand vehicles in 50 individual markets and employs approximately 53,000 employees at its wholly owned facilities and approximately 67,000 people when joint ventures and unconsolidated businesses are included. In addition to Ford Motor Credit Company, Ford Europe operations include Ford Customer Service Division and 24 manufacturing facilities (16 wholly owned or consolidated joint venture facilities and eight unconsolidated joint venture facilities). The first Ford cars were shipped to Europe in 1903 – the same year Ford Motor Company was founded. European production started in 1911.
About Chip Ganassi Racing
Chip Ganassi has been a fixture in the auto racing industry for over 30 years and is considered one of the most successful as well as innovative owners the sport has anywhere in the world. Today his teams include two cars in the Verizon IndyCar Series, two cars in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, one car in the NASCAR XFINITY Series, two factory Ford GT’s in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and two factory Ford GT’s in the FIA World Endurance Championship. Overall his teams have 18 championships and more than 200 victories, including four Indianapolis 500s, a Daytona 500, a Brickyard 400, a Le Mans 24 Hours, eight Rolex 24 At Daytonas and the 12 Hours of Sebring. Ganassi boasts state-of-the-art race shop facilities in Indianapolis and Concord, N.C., with a corporate office in Pittsburgh. For more information log onto: www.chipganassiracing.com.
