British drivers Marino Franchitti and Andy Priaulx confirmed for 2016 Ford WEC programme
Ford GT race car to make its debut this January at Rolex 24 in Daytona
British drivers Marino Franchitti and Andy Priaulx will be joined by Frenchman Olivier Pla and German Stefan Muecke as Ford's 2016 WEC driver line up.
The four-man team will be driving the brand new Ford GT racing car in the 2016 World Endurance Championship, including the Le Mans 24 Hours. Two still to be announced drivers will join the team for Le Mans in June.
Franchitti and co will be driving the new GT on the 50th anniversary of Ford's win at Le Mans against Ferrari in the original GT40. Ferrari will be racing the new 488 GTE car, so expect plenty of rivalry again.
“Make no mistake, we are racing to win,” explained Dave Pericak, Ford Performance global director. “To compete at this level you need the best car, the best team and the best drivers, and we have selected Stefan, Olivier, Andy and Marino to drive the Ford GT to take on the best in the world.”
Marino Franchitti has already raced at Le Mans five times and is a 12 hours of Sebring winner, he also made an appearance in our 2015 evo Car of the Year test, which you can see here.
The Ford GT race car features a 3.5-litre EcoBoost V6 engine, carbon-fibre composite chassis and redesigned aero to improve downforce and stability. It will make its competition debut at the Rolex 24 in Daytona, Florida this January with Ford and Chip Ganassi Racing.
