► Ford is returning to La Sarthe for 2027
► Will race with a top-class LMDh machine
► FIA WEC program planned, as well
The Le Mans 24 Hours has been getting ever more interesting over the last few years as a plethora of manufacturers throw their hat into the top class. The 2027 edition could be the most interesting yet, as Ford has announced its intention to join the Hypercar ranks. A full FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) is on the cards, as well.
Ford, of course, has a long and storied history at Le Mans. It famously broke Ferrari’s dominance with the GT40, taking four back-to-back wins from 1966 to 1969. More recently, the Ford GT won the LMGTE class at Le Mans on the 50th anniversary of that first GT40 victory, while the Ford Mustang GT3 took a debut podium in 2024. There have been successes in WEC and the American-based IMSA SportsCar Championship, as well.
Curiously, Ford says its Hypercar will be built to IMSA’s LMDh specifications, yet intends to race in the WEC, where the FIA LMH ruleset prevails – though it can still run in the top Hypercar class. LMDh is a lower-cost formula with a spec chassis based on second-tier LMP2 hardware, standardised aerodynamics and a shared hybrid system. Other brands contesting LMDh include Porsche, BMW and Cadillac.
There are no actual details on what Ford’s Hypercar will look like, who it’ll be built by, or what will power it. However, we can infer a couple of things. One of the approved chassis suppliers for LMDh is Canadian outfit Multimatic, which has designed and built all of Ford’s factory-built sports car racers for the last 20 years or so. And it may well be powered by the 5.0-litre Coyote V8 engine that’s found in the Mustang GT3 and tied with the Cadillac Hypercar’s for best-sounding engine at Le Mans in 2024.
Ford Motor Company boss Bill Ford said: “We are entering a new era for performance and racing at Ford. You can see it from what we’re doing on-road and off-road. When we race, we race to win. And there is no track or race that means more to our history than Le Mans. It is where we took on Ferrari and won in the 1960s. It is where we returned 50 years later and shocked the world and beat Ferrari again.
“I am thrilled that we’re going back to Le Mans and competing at the highest level of endurance racing. We are ready to once again challenge the world, and ‘go like hell!’”
It looks like the 2027 Le Mans Hypercar grid will feature Porsche, BMW, Cadillac, Aston Martin, Toyota, Alpine, Ferrari and Genesis, plus Lamborghini and Peugeot if they stick around. FIA endurance racing commission president Richard Mille said on Ford’s announcement: “Endurance racing’s golden age is right here, right now!” He’s not wrong.