2023 Ford Mustang previewed in GT3 racing guise

Ford will take the Mustang GT3 racing in 2024 – and the car the company will enter looks to be based on the next-generation Mustang road car.

Ford has teased a race-prepped version of its Mustang sports car poised to enter the GT3 racing series in 2024 – providing our first glimpse at the next-generation, road-going 2023 Ford Mustang, slated for launch next year.

Developed by Ford Performance and race engineering firm (and Ford GT supercar builders) Multimatic, Ford will enter a Mustang in the world-class GT3 racing series in 2024, marking the brand’s return to the upper tiers of global sports car racing since the Ford GT bowed out in 2019.

While Ford is yet to confirm this, the 2024 debut date means it’s likely the new Mustang GT3 will be based on the next-generation Mustang road car, codenamed S650 – rumoured to launch in 2023, tipped to eventually offer four-cylinder and/or V8 hybrid power (alongside non-hybrid options).

Adding weight to the theory is confirmation Ford will launch a “brand new” Mustang GT4 race car in 2023 for the series of the same name (GT4), replacing the current car launched in 2016 – shortly after the current-generation ‘S550’ Mustang went on sale.

A teaser image of the new Mustang GT3 – which will be based on the road car, as stipulated by GT3 regulations released alongside the announcement shows the new Mustang will retain its predecessor’s iconic shape, with a long bonnet and sloping ‘fastback’ rear end.

However, the front end appears to be sharper than before, with a lower, less-tapered nose – in line with spy photos of the new Mustang, which showcase a similar profile housing slimmer LED headlights than those of the current car.

Powering the new Mustang GT3 will be a race-prepped version of the road-going Mustang’s 5.0-litre naturally-aspirated ‘Coyote’ V8 engine, developed by Ford Performance and M-Sport, the latter the force behind Ford’s entry in the World Rally Championship (WRC).

While the two cars may look similar, the new Mustang GT3 bears no relation to the ‘Gen3’ Mustang set to debut in Australia’s Supercars championship in 2023 – with the Mustang Supercar based on a control chassis, and inspired visually by the outgoing ‘S550’ Mustang road car.

Tipped to launch in early 2023, conjecture remains as to whether the next-generation ‘S650’ Ford Mustang will ride on an updated version of its S550-codenamed predecessor’s platform, or the ‘CD6’ architecture in use beneath the US-market Ford Explorer large SUV.

However, all rumours so far agree hybrid power will be available at some point during the new Mustang’s model cycle – with posts on LinkedIn discovered by the Mustang7G forum suggesting 2.3-litre four-cylinder and 5.0-litre V8 hybrids will be available immediately from launch.

“Mustang was born to race from the start and we’re thrilled to introduce the GT3 version to compete head-to-head against some of the greatest manufacturers in the world,” said Mark Rushbrook, Ford Performance Motorsports global director.

“With 58 years of global endurance racing heritage, including NASCAR and Australian Supercars today, we are ready to take Mustang to the next level of global performance.

Speaking about the new Mustang GT4, Rushbrook added: “We’ve had a lot of success … and we look forward to being able to provide our customers with a brand new car for competition in the GT4 category starting next season. We’ll have more to say on that in the near future.”

The 2023 Ford Mustang production car is rumoured to enter production in March 2023 – or possibly as early as December 2022 – suggesting a global unveiling before the end of 2022.

That leaves time for Ford to debut the GT4 racing version before competition begins towards the middle of 2023 – and the GT3 variant, before it debuts on track in 2024.

The post 2023 Ford Mustang previewed in GT3 racing guise appeared first on Drive.

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