2023 Ford Mustang introduced in the GT3 racing look
Ford has unveiled a race-ready version of its Mustang sports car ready for the 2024 GT3 racing series – giving us our first insight into the next generation, the 2023 Ford Mustang, which will be launched next year.
Developed by Ford Performance and race engineering company (and supercar maker Ford GT) Multimatic, Ford will enter the Mustang in the World Class GT3 racing series in 2024, marking the brand’s return to higher levels of global sports car racing than the Ford GT dropped in 2019.
Although Ford has yet to confirm this, the 2024 release date means the new Mustang GT3 is likely to be based on the next-generation Mustang road car, codenamed S650 – rumored to be launched in 2023 and eventually offer four-cylinder and / or V8 hybrid power (in addition to non-hybrid options).
An added weight to the theory is the confirmation that Ford will launch a “brand new” Mustang GT4 race car in 2023 for the eponymous series (GT4), which will replace the current car launched in 2016 – shortly after the current generation Mustang ‘S550’ went on sale.
The teaser image of the new Mustang GT3 – which will be based on a road car, as provided by the regulations of the GT3 published with the announcement, shows that the new Mustang will retain the cult shape of its predecessor, with a long hood and sloping rear “fastback”.
However, the front end seems to be sharper than before, with a lower, less narrowed nose – according to spy photos of the new Mustang, which show a similar profile with thinner LED headlights than those on the current car.
The new Mustang GT3 will run a race-prepared version of the 5.0-liter ‘Coyote’ V8 engine Mustang with natural suction, developed by Ford Performance and M-Sport, which was the force behind Ford’s entry into the World Rally Championship (VRC).
Although the two cars may look similar, the new Mustang GT3 has nothing to do with the Gen3 Mustang to debut at the 2023 Australian Supercar Championship – with a control chassis-based Mustang Supercar and a visually inspired outgoing S550 Mustang road car.
Scheduled for launch in early 2023, the assumption remains whether the next-generation Ford Mustang ‘S650’ will be driven on an updated version of its predecessor’s platform codenamed S550 or on the ‘CD6’ architecture used under Ford Explorer in the US market. large SUV.
However, all rumors so far agree that hybrid power will be available at some point during the new Mustang model cycle – with links on LinkedIn unveiled by the Mustang7G forum suggesting that the 2.3-liter four-cylinder and 5.0-liter V8 hybrids will be available immediately from launch.
“The Mustang was born to race from the start and we are thrilled to be able to introduce the GT3 version to compete directly with some of the world’s largest manufacturers,” said Mark Rushbrook, global director of Ford Performance Motorsports.
“With 58 years of global heritage in endurance races, including NASCAR and Australian supercars today, we are ready to take the Mustang to the next level of global performance.
Speaking about the new Mustang GT4, Rushbrook added: “We have had a lot of success” and we are looking forward to being able to offer our customers a brand new car to compete in the GT4 category starting next season. I will have more to say about that in the near future. “
It is rumored that the 2023 Ford Mustang production car will go into production in March 2023 – or perhaps as early as December 2022 – suggesting a global launch before the end of 2022.
That leaves time for Ford to introduce a racing version of the GT4 before the competition starts in mid-2023 – and a GT3 variant, before debuting on the track in 2024.
