SEBRING, Fla., March 2, 2017 – Ford Chip Ganassi Racing will send three Ford GTs to the 12 Hours of Sebring March 18, 2017, as the team attempts to sweep three of the most legendary endurance sports car races in the world within nine months.
It’s also a chance to continue the valuable face-to-face, cross-development the drivers and crew enjoyed at the Rolex 24 At Daytona that ultimately benefits Ford’s effort at the Le Mans 24 Hours.
“We wish we could send all four cars like we did at the Rolex 24 At Daytona, but the WEC cars will already be prepped for The Prologue test at Monza and the first race at Silverstone,” said Dave Pericak, global director, Ford Performance. “Even though it’s impossible to bring all of our Ford GTs, we didn’t want to see this important opportunity to continue our cross-development pass us by.”
Drivers Stefan Mücke, Olivier Pla and Billy Johnson will compete in the No. 68 Ford GT as they did at the Rolex 24, to round out the three-car effort that includes the No.s 66 and 67 fulltime IMSA WeatherTech cars. Sébastien Bourdais will continue in the No. 66 with Joey Hand and Dirk Müller, and Scott Dixon will again join Ryan Briscoe and Richard Westbrook in the No. 67.
Pla, Mücke and Johnson, who will join the full-timers at the first FIA World Endurance Championship race of the year, begin the FIA WEC season at The Prologue, the official pre-season test for the series, at Monza the week after the 12 Hours of Sebring, with the first race to follow at Silverstone in April.
The WEC crew who run the car for Mücke and Pla during the regular season will campaign the No. 68 Ford GT at Sebring.
“This is another great opportunity for our WEC and IMSA teams to work together as the opportunity to data share is invaluable,” said Chip Ganassi, owner of Ford Chip Ganassi Racing. “There are not a lot of opportunities for us to get together so when we have the chance we will always try to take advantage of it. Plus, to be able to bring another car to a legendary endurance event like Sebring is something special to all of us.”
Ford Chip Ganassi Racing followed a storybook win in GTE Pro at the 2016 Le Mans 24 Hours with a GTLM victory at this year’s Rolex 24 At Daytona.
About Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is a global automotive and mobility company based in Dearborn, Michigan. With about 201,000 employees and 62 plants worldwide, the company’s core business includes designing, manufacturing, marketing and servicing a full line of Ford cars, trucks and SUVs, as well as Lincoln luxury vehicles. To expand its business model, Ford is aggressively pursuing emerging opportunities with investments in electrification, autonomy and mobility. Ford provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company. For more information regarding Ford and its products and services, 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 52,000 employees at its wholly owned facilities and approximately 68,000 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 8 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 four cars in the Verizon IndyCar Series, two cars in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, two cars 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 180 victories, including four Indianapolis 500s, a Daytona 500, a Brickyard 400, seven Rolex 24 At Daytonas, the 12 Hours of Sebring and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Ganassi boasts state-of-the-art race shop facilities in Indianapolis and Concord, N.C., with a corporate office in Pittsburgh, Pa.
Contacts:
Lachelle Seymour Ford Chip Ganassi Racing (IMSA WTSCC) +1 630 780 7006 lseymour@campbellmarketing.com
Lindsay Morle Ford Chip Ganassi Racing (FIA WEC) +44 7971 481078
Kelby Krauss Chip Ganassi Racing +1 317 945 3019
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