Ford is now expanding its FIA WEC test programme to include two hypercars

The FIA WEC is currently booming. There are currently 17 cars from eight manufacturers competing in the Hypercar class. McLaren and Ford will join the line-up in 2027. To ensure it is ready for the programme, preparations at Ford are already in full swing. It has been known since mid-2025 that Ford is developing a hypercar to LMDh regulations. For the chassis, the Americans are collaborating with Oreca from France. The (as yet unnamed) Ford Hypercar will be powered by a 5.4-litre V8 engine. Unlike the chassis, the power unit is being developed entirely in-house at Ford.

So far, Ford has completed three test sessions with the hypercar. These took place at Le Castellet, Portimão and Silverstone. Everything went according to plan, as programme manager Dan Sayers confirmed in a conference call in which SPEEDWEEK.com also took part. “Silverstone had all four seasons and, consequently, typical British weather. This allowed us to test the wet-weather tyres and understand how the car behaves in the wet. All the control systems worked exactly as we had expected. Over two days, we managed to clock up around 1,300 kilometres there.” Another advantage of driving in the rain at Silverstone is that a WEC round will be held at the British circuit in April 2027. And at that time of year, it cannot be ruled out that the event will take place in wet conditions.

During the previous test in Portimão, the first runs in the dark were also carried out. So far, Ford has been using just one test car. But that is set to change from the upcoming test in Monza in October. “We’re expecting the second car for Monza. Logistically, it’s certainly a bit more challenging, but there are plenty of advantages as we’ll learn twice as much,” says Sayers. From then on, two cars are to be fielded at every test. Finally, the first proper endurance test is scheduled for November. This is set to take place at Motorland Aragon.

Sayers is also confident regarding homologation. “We’ve already carried out a lot of CFD simulations and wind tunnel work. We’re aiming for final homologation to take place by the end of the year. We need to ensure we tick all the homologation boxes required by the regulations,” he explains.

Former Formula 1 driver Logan Sargeant and Mike Rockenfeller in the line-up

With former Formula 1 driver Logan Sargeant, Germany’s Mike Rockenfeller, Sebastian Priaulx, Matt Campbell, Nick Yelloly and Tom Blomqvist, all six of Ford’s regular drivers have already been confirmed. However, Ford does not intend to finalise the exact driver pairings until the end of 2026.

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Before that, however, there is another major milestone to come. In the coming weeks, Ford intends to finally reveal the exact name of the hypercar. The entire sports car scene is already eagerly awaiting this announcement.