Before it makes its competition début, the new Ford Raptor T1+ will be showcased at the upcoming Goodwood Festival of Speed. Reigning Dakar Rally winner and new Ford factory driver Carlos Sainz will be in attendance to both present the vehicle and drive it in the Hillclimb stage.
Sainz, who previously raced for Ford in the World Rally Championship, joined their rally raid division in May following the shutdown of Team Audi Sport. He scored his fourth Dakar Rally victory in Audi’s final race before they shuttered due to a lack of parts to contest the full World Rally-Raid Championship. Before signing with Ford, he did a one-off in the W2RC’s BP Ultimate Rally-Raid with Mini and finished fourth.
Ford Performance opened their rally raid arm in collaboration with South African Rally-Raid Championship powerhouse Neil Woolridge Motorsport and WRC team M-Sport. Nani Roma and Gareth Woolridge débuted the team with the Ford Ranger T1+ in 2023, peaking with a third in the W2RC’s season-ending Rallye du Maroc by Roma, before they struggled at the Dakar in January due to a double stage retirement midway. Nevertheless, each driver showed pace with top-ten stage finishes as high as ninth courtesy of Roma on Stage #11 and seventh from Woolridge the next and final day.
NWM continued the Ranger T1+ programme independently after Dakar, while Ford Performance and M-Sport are focusing on developing their own model with the Raptor. Roma, a Spaniard like Sainz, will race the Raptor as well.
Besides the Raptor, Ford will also bring the Ford Mustang GTD and the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb-contending SuperVan 4.2 to Goodwood. M-Sport’s Ford Puma Rally1 WRC challenger is expected as well.
Ford will not be the only rally raiders at Goodwood on 11–14 July as Toyota Gazoo Racing‘s Seth Quintero and Lucas Moraes will be on hand with their Toyota GR DKR Hilux EVO T1U.
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