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ON THE TRACK: Ford GT Returning to Le Mans in 2016 to Mark 50th Anniversary of Historic Win

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Ford announced today it is returning to one of the most prestigious automobile races in the world with its new Ford GT race car, based on the all-new ultra-high-performance supercar that goes on sale next year.

The Ford GT race car will compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans – referred to by many as the Grand Prix of Endurance and Efficiency – starting next year. Revealed today at the famous circuit in Le Mans, France, Ford GT will compete in the Le Mans GT Endurance class for professional teams and drivers (LM GTE Pro).

The new race car – a further proof point of Ford innovation – is based on the all-new Ford GT supercar unveiled in January. Both the production car and race car will arrive in 2016 to mark the 50th anniversary of Ford GT race cars placing 1-2-3 at the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans. Ford went on to repeat its victory at Le Mans in 1967, 1968 and 1969.

“When the GT40 competed at Le Mans in the 1960s, Henry Ford II sought to prove Ford could beat endurance racing’s most legendary manufacturers,” said Bill Ford, executive chairman, Ford Motor Company. “We are still extremely proud of having won this iconic race four times in a row, and that same spirit that drove the innovation behind the first Ford GT still drives us today.”

The new Ford GT race car will run the full 2016 schedules of the FIA World Endurance Championship and TUDOR United SportsCar Championship, making its competition debut in January 2016 in the Rolex 24 At Daytona, Florida. The two Ford teams will be operated by Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates (CGRFS). Both series teams intend to compete with a four-car effort at Le Mans. Drivers will be announced later.

The all-new Ford GT serves as the pinnacle product of the new Ford Performance group, a division dedicated to providing innovation through performance.

Set to deliver more than 12 new performance vehicles by 2020, Ford Performance will leverage its racing efforts and expertise to speed innovations on dedicated performance models and performance parts in order to more quickly iterate the latest technologies that can ultimately be applied to the full Ford vehicle lineup.

The performance segment is a growing business for Ford, as the company recognizes its customers’ desire for vehicles that offer excellent fuel economy, leading technology and a great driving experience. The Ford Performance lineup includes Ford GT, Focus RS, F-150 Raptor, Shelby GT350 and Shelby GT350R, Focus ST and Fiesta ST.

“Ford remains focused on three priorities globally – accelerating our One Ford plan, delivering product excellence with passion and driving innovation in every part of our business,” said Mark Fields, Ford Motor Company president and CEO. “All three came together to create the new Ford GT. We also know from our rich history in motorsports that world-class competition is a great incubator for even further product innovation.”

The Ford GT race car features a number of innovations Ford believes will not only make it competitive in LM GTE Pro, but ultimately positioned to provide benefits to each vehicle in the Ford lineup. These include state-of-the-art aerodynamics to deliver outstanding levels of downforce for improved stability with minimal drag, advanced lightweight composites featuring carbon fiber for an exceptionally rigid but light chassis, and the power and efficiency of EcoBoost technology.

“As we developed the Ford GT, from the outset, we wanted to ensure we had a car that has what it takes to return Ford to the world of GT racing,” said Raj Nair, Ford Motor Company group vice president, Global Product Development and chief technical officer. “We believe the Ford GT’s advances in aerodynamics, light-weighting and EcoBoost power will make for a compelling race car that can once again compete on a global stage.”

Joining Ford in this project are Multimatic Motorsports, Roush Yates Engines, Castrol, Michelin, Forza Motorsport, Sparco, Brembo and CGRFS. The race car has undergone extensive design and testing within Ford and Multimatic, with CGRFS providing input into the development. Roush Yates is supporting development of the 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 – the most powerful EcoBoost production engine ever.

The 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 engine debuted in the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship in 2014. Since then, Ford, with CGRFS, has captured significant overall wins at the 12 Hours of Sebring and Rolex 24 At Daytona. Besides great success in sports cars, Ganassi race teams achieved major victories in the Daytona 500, Brickyard 400 and Indianapolis 500.

“We’ve won races and championships, but we’ve never run Le Mans,” said team owner Chip Ganassi. “When presented the opportunity to compete with the all-new Ford GT on the world’s biggest sports car stage, and on the 50th anniversary of one of the most storied victories in racing history, how could any race team not want to be part of that? Will it be a challenge? Absolutely, but we couldn’t be with a better partner than Ford.”

RUNNING OF THE BULLS: 350 Lamborghinis from 29 Countries Take Part in 50th Anniversary Grand Tour

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Milan/Sant’Agata Bolognese, 7th May 2013 – Setting off from Piazza Castello in Milan starting at 10 a.m. tomorrow, 8th May, the Lamborghini 50th Anniversary Grand Tour is the largest gathering ever of cars from the “House of the Raging Bull”, organised to celebrate the company’s 50th anniversary: a convoy of some 4 km long and 190,000 hp on the road.

The 350 cars (320 registered participants and approximately 30 courtesy cars for the press and guests) are now arriving in the parc fermè at Piazza Castello in front of the Sforzesco Castle, with their respective pilots and co-pilots totalling 700 people. Since last night, fans and enthusiasts have witnessed the unloading of the cars arriving from overseas and, as of this morning, the registration and entrance to the parc fermè of those driving to the first meeting point.

The press conference to announce the start of the Grand Tour was held this morning at the Pirelli Foundation, to highlight the partnership between the two companies since 1963, the year Lamborghini was founded.

A photograph of the 350 participating Lamborghinis shows 29 different countries of origin of the participants, who have travelled to Italy to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the company based in Emilia Romagna.

The most substantial representation of participants in the Lamborghini Grand Tour is from the United Kingdom with 71 cars followed by Italy, Germany and Switzerland with over 30 participants each. In addition, there are 21 cars with plates from the USA and 17 from China. The other countries represented are: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, France, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Ireland, Japan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Principato di Monaco, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, The Netherlands, Tunisia, Ukraine.

The youngest driver was born in 1991 and hails from Kuwait, while the oldest is 75 and is a French national.

Historic Lamborghini cars on tour include three 350 GTs, five 400 GTs, seventeen Miuras, eight Espadas, two Jaramas, six Urracos, 15 Countachs, one LM 002, 21 Diablos and 36 Murcielagos. The record for number of cars participating goes to the Gallardo, the most successful Lamborghini model of all time, with 123 cars registered amongst the participants.

“For 50 years, Lamborghini has been the object of dreams and the symbol of Made in Italy. Our supersports cars are always on the edge of the most advanced technological innovation and for this reason the claim that we have set for our anniversary is ‘100 years of innovation in half the time’. Since our founder Ferruccio Lamborghini first founded the company, a characteristic inherent in our DNA is to address the challenge and not overcome it, but to push boundaries to achieve something even more extraordinary,” said Stephan Winkelmann, President and CEO of Automobili Lamborghini. “The 50th Anniversary Grand Tour, with more than 700 participants representing 29 countries, is evidence of the global dimension our brand enjoys today, and the strength of the Lamborghini myth that continues to grow.”

The first destination of the Lamborghini Grand Tour will be Bobbio, the soul of the Trebbia Valley, then the first day will be concluded in Forte dei Marmi, one of the most exclusive seaside resorts on the Tyrrhenian coast.

After Forte dei Marmi, the convoy will arrive on May 9 in Rome, passing through the base of the 4° Stormo of Air Force at Grosseto. The morning of May 10 it will restart again in the direction of Bologna, crossing the towns of Orvieto, Arezzo and San Giustino Valdarno, where all participants will stop for lunch at the Tenuta il Bobbio.

On the 10th evening, the cars will arrive in the center of Bologna, where the city will offer a welcome in the prestigious setting of Palazzo Re Enzo. The next morning in Piazza Maggiore the ‘Concorso di Eleganza Lamborghini 50° Anniversario’ will be held, which is open to all the historic cars participating in the tour, from the first 350 GT up to the latest Countach model.

On the 11th, the Tour will end in Sant’Agata Bolognese, headquarters of the House of the Raging Bull, where a gala dinner celebrating the Lamborghini 50th Anniversary will be held.

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