Perfect: Ford to make DTM comeback after 30 years

• HRT Ford Performance to bring the Mustang back to the DTM
• Works involvement in the DTM for Ford

Munich. The return of a legend: After a 30-year absence, Ford will be make its DTM comeback next year. And the US brand will line up with one of its true icons when Haupt Racing Team fields the Ford Mustang GT3 under the name HRT Ford Performance. The team from the Nürburgring won the DTM in 2021. The 2025 season kicks off from 25th to 27th April at Motorsport Arena Oschersleben.

HRT Ford Performance is planning to run two Mustang GT3 as the works team for the 2025 season, with one of the two cars starting in the striking livery of lubricant manufacturer Ravenol. The new partnership between HRT and Ford Performance also includes technical development work. The intention is that the expertise possessed by HRT will help the Ford Mustang GT3, which was launched in 2023, to achieve an even greater degree of maturity on the track. The race car, with its 5.4-litre V8 engine, is based on the 2024 Ford Mustang Dark Horse and represents the cutting-edge, top-of-the-range GT3 model in the legendary Mustang series.

“Ford entering the DTM with a works-supported programme is a strong acknowledgement of the DTM and fantastic news at the end of our 40th anniversary season. We are looking forward to the return of a brand with a grand DTM history, and to the Mustang GT3, which is sure to win a lot of fans,” says ADAC Motorsport Director Thomas Voss.

The American automobile manufacturer is closely associated with the history of the DTM and can look back on no fewer than 30 race wins. DTM legend Klaus Ludwig won the first, and to date only, DTM title for the brand with a Ford Sierra RS 500 Cosworth in 1988. Up until 1994, the Ford Mustang appeared in the DTM in the hands of privateer teams. Three decades later, the car maker from Dearborn, Michigan, returns to the DTM with the new Mustang and HRT.

Mark Rushbrook, Global Director at Ford Performance Motorsports, says: “To welcome a team like HRT into the global Ford Performance family is a big moment for us. The proven track record of Haupt Racing Team in the DTM is a strong indication of the potential of the Mustang GT3. This cooperation strengthens our global position on the GT3 racing scene and opens new series and target groups for us as we continue to expand the Mustang racing programme in 2025.”

Ulrich Fritz, Managing Director of Haupt Racing Team GmbH, says: “HRT has continuously developed and improved in recent years. We have established a high level of expertise in the running and development of race cars. As such, we are very excited about this new project. It is a great honour to be selected by Ford to spearhead its operations in Europe. Ford is a real power brand with a magnificent tradition in motorsport, and with a great deal of motivation. The Ford Mustang GT3 is a new-generation race car, which we want to take to the next level together. We will be well prepared going into the coming season and are really looking forward to working with Ford and Ravenol. I would like to thank Mercedes-AMG for the long, respectful and always constructive cooperation as a Performance Team.”

As well as being the works team in the DTM, HRT will also operate as a customer racing team in the ADAC GT Masters, in which it has won the Team competition for the past two years.

Tickets for the 2025 DTM are available online at dtm.com. Anyone purchasing their ticket by 15th November will benefit from attractive discounts and could save up to 33 percent.