Ford: 114 years on the race track
As Ford celebrates its annual Heritage Month in June, they're looking back at the significant racing history the Blue Oval has in its books.
Ford's racing heritage dates back as far as 1901, before the inception of Ford Motor Company in 1903. At that time, Henry Ford was 38 years old, and after losing $86,000 in a failed venture, was broke. But instead of giving up, Henry dusted himself off and put together a small team to build a car that was eventually called Sweepstake. Henry knew that racing fascinated the public, so he took the chance and raced in his 26-horsepower Sweepstake against the greatest driver of that time, Alexander Winton. The competition in Detroit attracted over 8,000 people; Henry won, receiving a cash prize of $1,000 and, when added to financial support from investors, allowed him to found Ford Motor Company a few years later.
Ford's 114 years of racing heritage boasts more than 1,000 NASCAR and 176 F1 victories. Ford's racing lineage starts with Model T. Throughout its history Ford has produced a range of iconic racing nameplates such as the Ford GT40, that saw its golden days in the 1960s when it won 24 Hours of Le Mans four times in a row from 1966 to 1969. To date, the company's most successful racing vehicle is the Ford Focus RS WRC, joining the ranks of the cars that helped shape the automotive industry and left their imprint on the history of racing.
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