In order to give fans a first look at the 2019 Mustang stock car, the automaker decided to place it alongside a Mustang drift car and unleash the pair onto the Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Behind the wheel of the stock car was none other than Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champ, Joey Logano, whereas the drift ‘Stang was piloted by 38-year old Vaughn Gittin Jr, a self-taught professional drifter.
The two appear to have had a blast, casually racing on the infield portion of the track’s road course for our viewing pleasure.
In order to build the Cup-level Mustang, NASCAR and Ford Performance had to work together with design teams and NASCAR teams who operate Fords on the track. The goal was to create a car that could be competitive and remain true to its heritage at the same time.
Visually, Ford decided to make the stock car look like a Shelby GT350, which makes sense as this is a driver-focused version of the Mustang.
Throughout the pony car’s rich racing history, it managed to claim first place at the 1964 Tour de France Automobile. It then went on to compete in SCCA, Trans-Am, IMSA, NHRA, Formula Drift and NASCAR Xfinity series.
On February 17, 2019, the new racer will make its debut at NASCAR’s top class in the Daytona 500.