Rushbrook Hails “Milestone” Win for Mustang GT3 at Daytona

Photo: Wes Duenkel/Ford

Ford Performance’s global motorsports director Mark Rushbrook has hailed a “milestone” victory for the Ford Mustang GT3, which came out on top in last weekend’s Rolex 24 at Daytona in the GTD Pro class.

Dennis Olsen, Frederic Vervisch and Christopher Mies drove the No. 65 Multimatic Motorsports-run factory entry to top honors following a fierce battle for the class win that saw the Norwegian driver hold off the No. 3 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R of Alexander Sims.

It marked the car’s first win in global competition and came just one year after the Multimatic-built and developed GT3 machine made its race debut.

“This is a team win for everyone at Ford Motor Company, for our partners and for fans of Mustang,” said Rushbrook.

“Moments like this make the long hours, hard work and earlier disappointments worthwhile. Our first global win with the Mustang GT3 and our 20th for Ford in the 24 Hours of Daytona is a milestone. I am proud of this whole effort. Everyone gave their all.”

Mies, who will team up with Vervisch in the No. 65 Mustang GT3 for a full season campaign after contesting the long-distance races with the factory squad last year, said the car has come a long ways in 12 months’ time.

“We came here exactly a year ago, leading the race back then, which was fantastic for a new car,” he said.

“But like everyone we had some issues. We solved them over the year. Coming back one year later together with Ford Performance and Multimatic Motorsports is incredible.

“I think the most obvious [issue] is that the rear deck lid isn’t coming off anymore. We figured out quite quickly where it came from. Obviously from side drafting, but to be honest in development or testing when do you ever side draft, right? It never happens.

“We had to learn the hard way in the first race, which is one of the toughest races in the world straightaway. We had no preparation really to test that.

“But there have been things in the background and also on the team side. I must say this is probably the biggest improvement compared to last year. It just feels like we made another good step in terms of preparation and stuff.

“This is probably the biggest part, and then obviously little things on the car. There’s for sure still things we need to improve for the future and people are working on that, but time will tell.”

Mies added that he’s excited to begin a “new chapter” of racing in North America full-time alongside Vervisch.

“I’ve been a fan of IMSA since I came here the first time,” he said. “I think Fred has been here before me but in different categories.

“Anyway, it’s a good start, and obviously we know that we still have some weakness and we need to work on that, so it doesn’t mean that every race goes like that, but to kick things off and especially for the team, I’m very happy.

“They have worked very hard and obviously had a hard time last year, and to have success like this now in one of the biggest races in the world is a great reward for them.”

Vervisch added: “We are leading the championship, so good start of the year I would say, but [it’s] still very long and that’s clearly our target and the target of the team so that a Ford can win. I’m happy that we are on target.”