Description
Ford Performance is the high-performance division of the Ford Motor Company and the multinational name used for its motorsport and racing activity.
History
- 1896 – Henry Ford reached a top speed of 20 mph in his first car, Quadricycle.
- 1901 – Henry Ford defeated Alexander Winton (the most accomplished automobile builder/racer of the era) in a 10-lap race on a one-mile oval at the Detroit Driving Club, Grosse Pointe, Michigan. He overcame his rival's more powerful car in Sweepstakes, a racing car of his own design.[1]
- 1902 – Ford 999 (named after a famous New York Central train), driven by Barney Oldfield, Master Driver of the World and America's Legendary Speed King, defeated Alex Winton at Grosse Point in the 999 as a result of the publicity and financial backing of Alex J. Malcomson the Ford Motor Company was launched
- 1903 – Ford 999, driven by Oldfield, lapped the Indiana Fairgrounds dirt track at a then-record 60 mph?
- 1904 – Henry Ford, driving his rebuilt 999, sets the world one mile record on a frozen lake near Detroit.
- 1904 – Frank Kulick drove a Ford 20 hp racer to the one and five mile world track record for middleweight racers.
- 1907 – Kulick set the world 24-hour track endurance record, traveling 1135 miles driving a Ford six cyl Model K.
- 1909 – A Ford Model T won the transcontinental New York to Seattle cross-country race (about 3600 km).
- 1932 – Ford introduced its V-8 Flathead engine, bringing V-8 power into mass production with the slogan "Everyman’s power for the road, and Everyman’s power for racing".
- 1932 – Two car mechanics win the Swedish Winter Grand Prix driving a Ford special.[2]
- 1936 – Ionel Zamfirescu and P. G. Cristea won the Monte Carlo Rally driving a Ford V8 "Flathead".[3][4]
- 1949 – Jim Roper, driving a Lincoln, won the first NASCAR race.[5]
- 1950 – Jimmy Florian, driving a Ford, wins Ford's First NASCAR win a Ford brand vehicle Dayton Ohio[6]
- 1963 - Tiny Lund wins 1st Daytona 500 for Ford.
- 1967 – Jim Clark, driving a Lotus-Ford, won the Dutch Grand Prix. This is Ford's first grand prix victory.
- 1994 - Michael Schumacher bags his first driver's world championship with Ford-powered Benetton B194 car.
- 2000 - Dale Jarett wins Ford's 10th Daytona 500.
- 2003 – Giancarlo Fisichella, driving a Jordan-Ford, won the Brazilian Grand Prix. This is Ford's 176th and last Grand Prix victory.
- 2011 – Trevor Bayne wins the Daytona 500 in a 1–2–3 finish for Ford. It was Ford's 600th NASCAR victory.
- 2012 – Michael Shank Racing wins the 50th Rolex 24 at Daytona with a Ford engined Riley chassis (Allmendinger/Negri/Pew/Wilson), Starworks Motorsport finishes 2nd in Grand-Am Daytona Prototype driver standings (Ryan Dalziel), and wins the 1st North American Endurance Championship, also with Ford power.
- 2013 – Greg Biffle wins the Quicken Loans 400, Ford's 1000th NASCAR win.
- 2014 – Debut of the Ford EcoBoost twin turbo engine for the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship, Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates win the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring using the engine.
- 2015 – Ford Racing, alongside Ford Team RS and Special Vehicle Team, merged into a global entity named Ford Performance, as they also will make 12 performance cars by 2020. Wins Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona overall with Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates (Kanaan/ McMurray/ Larson / Dixon) using Ford Ecoboost Riley DP.
- 2016 – Ford entered four Ford GT cars in the 2016 24 Hours of Le Mans GTE Pro class, finished 1–3–4–10.
- 2018 – Joey Logano wins at Homestead Miami Speedway and wins Ford Performance its first NASCAR cup championship since 2004 and First Manufacturer's Championship since 2002
