Sparco Teams Up With Ford Chip Ganassi Racing

Ganassi's WEC drivers Pla, Mucke, Priaulx, and Franchitti

The journey to the Le Mans 24 Hours has begun. Sparco is partner of Ford Chip Ganassi Racing with the all-new Ford GT. As Dave Pericak, Ford Performance Global Director said: "Make no mistake, we are racing to win".

Sparco will partner Ford Chip Ganassi Racing during the 2016 season as the team competes four of its all-new Ford GT racing cars: two in the FIA World Endurance Championship and two in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. Marino Franchitti, Stefan Mucke, Olivier Pla and Andy Priaulx in WEC; Richard Westbrook, Dirk Muller, Joey Hand and Ryan Briscoe in WTSCC, all wearing Sparco suits and sitting in Sparco carbon seats in the Ford GT's cockpit. All the drivers and crews will be Italian style ambassadors with safety features that have always distinguished Sparco.

Ford makes its return to the legendary Le Mans 24 Hours in June, 50 years after the historic 1 – 2 – 3 finish with the Ford GT40 in 1966. The Ford GT is already on track and the Ford Chip Ganassi Racing team participated in the Roar before Rolex 24h in Daytona last week. The two Ford GTs with the new twin-turbo Ford EcoBoost V6 engine are ready for The 54th Rolex 24 at Daytona that will take place on January 30th and 31st.

Claudio Pastoris – C.E.O. Sparco: "We are proud to announce this new partnership with Ford Chip Ganassi Racing. We believe that we can offer to the team the best products, in terms of safety and performance, in the market. I think that also Ford Chip Ganassi Racing, like us, matches class, innovation and quality values that are the lifeblood of two major groups like ours. We wish to all the team a 2016 full of victories and successes assisted, of course, by Sparco."

Aurelio Sportelli – President, Sparco USA "Ford and Sparco have had a long story of cooperation in all the racing fields for many years since Ford Escort Cosworth days till today where we are partner in Europe (in WRC) and in USA in many racing categories (Indy, Nascar, Drag Racing, etc). For Ford GT program we have developed a unique super safe racing seat and we will work hard to grow this cooperation more & more."