- Ford will enter the FIA World Endurance Championship’s premier Hypercar class in 2027
- Ford will compete with a factory team running a new LMDh race car
- Ford will be chasing the outright win at Le Mans for the first time since 1969
Ford is returning to the 24 Hours of Le Mans to take on Ferrari and a host of other leading automakers for top honors—something it has not done since 1969.
The automaker, late on Thursday, announced plans to enter the premier Hypercar class of the FIA World Endurance Championship, whose blue-ribbon race is Le Mans, with a new LMDh race car as soon as 2027. The Hypercar class is open to cars built to both LMDh and LMH regulations, similar to the premier GTP class of the IMSA SportsCar Championship, and will see Aston Martin enter this year with an LMH car based on the Valkyrie and Genesis enter next year with its own new LMDh car.
Ford said it will enter the World Endurance Championship with a factory team, without providing further details. Under current LMDh rules aimed at reducing costs, Ford will have to use a chassis from one of the four suppliers: Dallara, Ligier, Oreca, or Multimatic. Given the automaker’s close ties with Multimatic—the Canadian firm that built the GT supercar and its racing variants—Ford’s new LMDh will likely use the Multimatic chassis.
Automakers are relatively free when it comes to powertrain choice, but the output must be capped at 670 hp. To further help curb costs, the cars also need to use other key components from sanctioned suppliers, including a rear-axle hybrid system using parts from Bosch, WAE, and Xtrac.
Ford announcement to enter 2027 24 Hours of Le Mans with LMDh program – Jan. 2025
Ford captured four consecutive outright wins at Le Mans between 1966 and 1969, after which it sat out from the race until 2016, when it returned to take home a win with its GT supercar in the former GTE Pro class (now GTLM), designated for GT3 race cars based on production models and with professional drivers. Ford is currently present in the GTLM class with its latest Mustang GT3.
Other major automakers competing at the top level at Le Mans include Alpine, BMW, Cadillac, Peugeot, Porsche, and Toyota.
“Ford has been synonymous with success both on and off-track for decades, and we are delighted that the company has chosen the FIA World Endurance Championship for its latest challenge,” Frédéric Lequien, the series’ CEO, said in a statement. “To have at least ten major automotive brands committed to the series’ top tier in 2027 is a testament to the championship’s stellar momentum and growth.”
Ford will also return to Formula 1 in 2026, albeit only as a technical partner to the hugely successful team Red Bull Racing, an outfit Ford previously owned when the team raced as Jaguar.