Ford announced plans Thursday to enter an LMDh prototype in the World Endurance Championship in 2027, taking the American manufacturer back to the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the top category of sports car racing.

Ford has announced that it will participate in the Hypercar class of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) in 2027, meaning the American manufacturer will also compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

After the 1960s, Ford exited from the top-tier prototype class and competed in production-focused class racing around the world. In 2016, it won the Le Mans GT class with a mid-engine GT, and then finished second in the GT class last year with the debut of its Mustang GT3.

Ford is gearing up to take on the likes of Cadillac, Ferrari, and Porsche in the FIA World Endurance Championship, whose blue-ribbon race is Le Mans.

The Blue Oval brand will field a full factory FIA WEC team to try and capture its first outright win in nearly six decades.

Ford is returning to the top flight of endurance racing in 2027, in a bid to recreate its 1960s Le Mans success. The carmaker has confirmed it will compete in the LMDh (Le Mans Daytona) class of the World Endurance Championship (WEC), which includes the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans race.

Ford will develop a new top-tier sports car to compete for overall victory in the Le Mans 24 Hours and the World Endurance Championship Hypercar class from 2027 onwards, aiming to continue where its G

In the year that will mark six decades since Dan Gurney and AJ Foyt won the race in a GT40 Mk. IV, Ford is headed back to the world's greatest sports car race. Not just with a GT car, but with an LMDh-spec prototype, competing in the top class for the overall win.

Determined to defeat the Italian marque after several failed attempts in the years prior, Ford developed the GT40 and, together with customer teams, entered multiple examples in the 1966 race. The cars driven to the historic win were a trio of GT40 Mk IIs, and one of those went up for auction in 2018, finally selling for $9.8 million.

While Ford has had a recent presence at Le Mans, it hasn't won overall since 1969. That changes in 2027. T he 24 Hours of Le Mans is important to Ford. Its consecutive overall vic