Photo: Ford
The 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series will get a lot more heated than fans are used to, after Ford’s Tuesday announcement that it will field, for the first time in history, the iconic Mustang in America’s favorite racing series.
It would be the car’s first entrance in the top league of the racing competition, after several years of experience gained in the lower tier Xfinity Series. Since 2011, the Mustang has won all but one of the seasons it raced under the colors of Team Penske in that competition.
The addition of the Mustang to the Cup Series will make the model the fourth Ford to race the ovals since 1972 after the Thunderbird, Taurus, and Fusion.
The decision to make the Mustang even more visible has been made in the wake of the success it enjoys for several years. Ford sold 125,809 Mustangs worldwide last year, making the model the best selling sports-coupe in the world, says the American carmaker citing an IHS Markit report.
“We’re combining America’s favorite sports car with America’s top stock car racing series,” said Mark Rushbrook, global director of Ford’s Performance Motorsports.
“Mustang always has been about affordable performance, which can be traced to innovations we’ve made competing in racing, like NASCAR. Mustang is a perfect fit for our racing heritage today and tomorrow.”
The technical details of the race-ready Mustang have not yet been released. Ford is still going through initial testing of the car and says it will submit it for official NASCAR approval by this summer.
The NASCAR Mustang will see action for the first time in the Cup Series at Daytona, on February 17 next year. The public unveiling of the race car will “follow soon,” Ford says.
Until then, we’re only left with the darkened teaser image released by Ford Performance to accompany the announcement.
The addition of the Mustang to the Cup Series will make the model the fourth Ford to race the ovals since 1972 after the Thunderbird, Taurus, and Fusion.
The decision to make the Mustang even more visible has been made in the wake of the success it enjoys for several years. Ford sold 125,809 Mustangs worldwide last year, making the model the best selling sports-coupe in the world, says the American carmaker citing an IHS Markit report.
“We’re combining America’s favorite sports car with America’s top stock car racing series,” said Mark Rushbrook, global director of Ford’s Performance Motorsports.
“Mustang always has been about affordable performance, which can be traced to innovations we’ve made competing in racing, like NASCAR. Mustang is a perfect fit for our racing heritage today and tomorrow.”
The technical details of the race-ready Mustang have not yet been released. Ford is still going through initial testing of the car and says it will submit it for official NASCAR approval by this summer.
The NASCAR Mustang will see action for the first time in the Cup Series at Daytona, on February 17 next year. The public unveiling of the race car will “follow soon,” Ford says.
Until then, we’re only left with the darkened teaser image released by Ford Performance to accompany the announcement.
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