May I have your attention please? Will the real Ford Australia please stand up? This blog is for Ford Australia's senior executives because Roger Penske would love to have a chat.
Now, why would I be sending an SOS out to Ford Australia? Well in the latest Auto Action magazine Roger Penske sent a warning shot across the bow of Ford Australia because he is thinking of jumping ship to Holden. You see Roger is the majority owner of DJR Team Penske and he wants to win races and be at the pointy end of the field, as well as battling it out with other front-runners in the Australian Supercars Championship.
Roger Penske at the 2016 Bathurst 1000
Currently, DJR Team Penske run two FG X Ford Falcons which have been competitive, i.e. winning races and competing for championships. But moving forward using this car will become redundant because Ford Australia stopped producing the FG X Falcon in October 2016.
DJR Team Penske FG X Ford Falcon
Roger said he would move away from running a Ford Falcon and would race a Holden Commodore if there's no likelihood that the ageing FG X Falcon didn't remain competitive. You see the whole supercar series needs to be relevant to the new cars market in Australia, which is what Holden is doing with the imported/rebadged ZB Commodore. Holden has said they still think motorsport is an integral part of their brand's success moving forward. Holden has demonstrated its commitment to the Supercars series with its current partnership with Triple Eight Racing.
Ford Australia hasn't had any commercial relationship with a Supercar team since the end of the 2015 season. Nissan Australia hasn't walked away from the sport just yet; they have a motorsport program with Kelly Racing. Kelly Racing has a similar problem to DJR Team Penske, Kelly Racing currently uses L33 Altima bodied race cars, but the Altima isn't sold in Australia anymore.
Getting back to Roger Penske, AA magazine alluded to Roger wanting to use Mustang bodied supercars next year and would like support from Ford Australia.
Roger said to AA Magazine:
"I'd like to run a Ford because were tired in with Ford in the US with our NASCAR team and they've been a great business partner." "I've never really talked to the senior management at Ford of Australia, so I don't know their rationale."
Personally, I think it's a fair and reasonable request by Roger Penske to ask Ford Australia to support a change to a Mustang-bodied V8 race car. It's a slam-dunk decision for Ford Australia seeing as the Mustang has been a success and helped with massive sales for Ford Australia after the Australian Made Falcon ceased production back in 2016. This all happened without the support of a race car program in the land down under. So, you can only imagine what else could be achieved if Ford Australia hooked its wagon to a successful race team like DJR Team Penske.
The Australian Supercar Championship is well-followed and successful throughout Australia; it's up there with other sporting codes in Australia for its popularity which is great for advertising. I've never owned a Ford let along a Mustang, but if I were to buy a Ford tomorrow, I'd have to put the Mustang at the top of my list. So, if I ever get the chance to review/test drive a Mustang for Car Hamlet, I'd jump at the chance. Other manufacturers that sell cars in Australia love to align themselves with motorsport; this happens all over the world, i.e. advertising/public relations, or competing in a variety of championships that leads to automotive testing that can improve your everyday road car.
Road going Limited Edition Tickford Ford Mustang. Tickford also has a race team that runs FG X Falcons.
Right now, Ford has other partnerships with different categories of motorsport across the globe, but I'm perplexed why they haven't got a dog in the fight in the premier motorsport category in Australasia. When Automotive companies get's people passionate about their brand it usually happens through motorsport. Plus, if you get people willing to align themselves with a brand, you have a customer for life.
Personally, I'd love to see a Ford Mustang racing next year. Maybe Nissan should bite the bullet and give the go ahead and run R35 GTR bodied race cars. Just thinking about that gets me excited.
Come on Ford Australia don't listen to your out of touch marketing companies, which I'm guessing have been telling you to stay away from motorsport. It's time to embrace your global motor sporting history and get back into the Supercars Championship.
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