Pony Power! Mustangs In 2019

The Ford Mustang will make its long-awaited debut as a Supercar in 2019, bringing Ford Australia back to Supercars alongside Ford Performance and giving DJR Team Penske and Tickford Racing factory backing for the pony car’s arrival.

- Bruce Newton

It’s been yet another turbulent few months in Supercars.

The category hit a high in April with confirmation the Ford Mustang would race in the championship from 2019. At the other end of the spectrum in May came the expected but still disappointing news that Nissan would withdraw from the category after a six-year run at the end of 2018.

The Nissan decision is sad, especially for the Kelly family, which along with commercial chief Nick Ryan and other team stalwarts put in a massive effort to represent the Japanese brand in Australia’s only truly professional motorsport category.

It also means, barring an unexpected announcement, Supercars is headed backed to its traditional red versus blue state. Mind you, imported five-door Commodore versus imported two-door Mustang is a far different proposition to locally built Commodore sedan versus locally built Falcon sedan. But there’s no doubting the arrival of the Mustang is being welcomed in pitlane and the grandstands.

It heralds the return of Ford to Supercars in an official capacity for the first time since 2015 and debuts the two-door body shape in a series that has long been reserved for sedans. And it means Supercars, which has seen Nissan, Volvo and AMG Mercedes-Benz (through privateer Betty Klimenko) arrive and depart since 2013, will receive a much-needed energy boost that only new metal can provide.

While the Holden Commodore ZB served that role this year, it rolled on to the grid to take on the ageing Falcon FG X and Altima.

The road-going version of the former has been retired from production since October 2016 and the latter hasn’t been sold in Australia since mid-2017.