Ford Performance has raced and won titles in prestigious racing events worldwide, from Le Mans to Daytona and Bathurst to Monaco, and will soon be tackling the legendary Pikes Peak hill climb with the electric SuperVan 4. It’s yet to tackle the world’s toughest race — the Dakar Rally.
Ford is looking to bridge that critical gap in its repertoire, with extreme racing versions of its ‘badass’ Ford Ranger and Ranger Raptor pickup trucks set to compete in global off-road racing in 2024, including the iconic and fearsome Dakar Rally.
The first step in the multi-year plan to compete in the Dakar Rally is to finish and learn in collaboration with longtime partners M-Sport and Neil Woolridge Motorsport (NWM) for vehicle development, servicing and event management.
The strategy involves a multi-year plan to compete in the Dakar Rally, working with long-established partners M-Sport and Neil Woolridge Motorsport (NWM) and focussing on gaining experience and knowledge in vehicle development, servicing, and event management.
“To lead the charge at one of the ultimate global off-road events — the Dakar Rally — has been a goal of ours,” said Mark Rushbrook, global director at Ford Performance Motorsports. “We cannot underestimate the enormity of the challenge ahead of us. We need to finish and learn first with Ranger T1+ and partners like M-Sport and NWM, who bring their expertise to bear. Together, we can do amazing things in the sand dunes of the Arabian Peninsula.”
A high-performance, purpose-built Ford Ranger will compete in the Rally Raid T1+ category of January 2024’s Dakar Rally, taking place in Saudi Arabia on 5–19 January
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The Ford Performance, M-Sport, and NWM team has already implemented a series of development phases through 2023, testing with the Ranger T1+ based on the previous generation Ranger with a 3.5-litre EcoBoost engine. Test races are expected to include Spain’s Baja España Aragón and Morocco’s Rally du Maroc rallies in July and October before tackling the Dakar Rally next year.
“Our first time in Dakar will be a learning adventure that will help inform how we compete in the future,” said Rushbrook. “But as with all racing, we’re not just racing to win, we’re also racing to help build better products for our customers.”
Looking further ahead, Ford and M-Sport will develop an entirely new Ranger Raptor for the 2025 Dakar Rally, designed and built to the T1+ class regulations.
“The Dakar Rally is truly among the pinnacle of global off-road racing events,” said Malcolm Wilson, M-Sport managing director. “We’ve achieved great success over the years with Ford in FIA WRC rally racing and can’t wait to apply this same level of focus, energy, and effort to competing with Ranger in Dakar.”
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