Ford unveiled its 2020 NASCAR Xfinity Series Mustang racecar, its fifth all-new motorsports Mustang this year. The car is slated to make its NASCAR Xfinity Series race debut at Daytona International Speedway on February 15th.
“Ford and NASCAR have enjoyed a long and storied partnership, and the iconic Mustang has solidified its place within that legacy with an impressive performance in the NASCAR Xfinity Series,” said Ben Kennedy, NASCAR managing director of racing operations and international development.
The previous Xfinity Mustang started racing full-time in 2011. That year, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. won back-to-back driver’s championships in 2011 and 2012, while car owner Jack Roush earned the manufacturer’s crown in 2011. Chris Buescher earned the driver’s title in 2015 while fellow Ford owner Roger Penske won his third consecutive owners’ championship. In 2017, Penske added a fourth owner’s title before Tony Stewart, and Gene Haas won their first with driver Cole Custer last season.
In total, the previous Xfinity Mustang won the driver’s championship three times and the owner’s title on six occasions.
“We’re looking forward to seeing what the newest generation of the Mustang will do on the track,” Kennedy said.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series Mustang joins the Mustang used by Team Penske to win five of the first 15 races in the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series with drivers Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano.
Additionally, Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick also won two Cup events, including this past weekend at Michigan International Speedway.
According to Ford, each of the Mustang racecar projects all included members of Ford’s aerodynamics and engineering teams based out of the Ford Performance Technical Center in North Carolina. Once a racing-only facility, the technical center has evolved into a test-bed of development for production vehicles like the 2020 Mustang Shelby GT500, as well as motorsports.
“We’ve always talked about Mustang being a car that was born to race, and it’s been gratifying to see it performing so well in multiple series around the world,” said Mark Rushbrook, global director, Ford Performance Motorsports. He added credit belongs to all the Ford engineers and teams that have worked so hard to make the car a championship contender right out of the box.
Other new Mustang race cars include those in the National Hot Rod Association Funny Car division, Virgin Australia Supercars Championship, and grassroots Cobra Jet. Each has found their way to the winner’s circle in their respective forms of racing.
The new Mustang has won 17 of the first 20 races in the 2019 Virgin Australia Supercars Championship season. The team has also earned the Supercars Manufacturers Championship just halfway through the season.
Bob Tasca III recently won back-to-back events in Bristol, Tennessee, and Norwalk, Ohio with the Mustang in NHRA Funny Car drag racing competition.
For more information, see Ford Performance.