Matt Campbell, Ford Racing’s newest recruit, described the initial Hypercar test conducted earlier this month as a “really positive start” after the squad logged more than 1,000 kilometers at Paul Ricard.
During the three-day session, Campbell shared driving duties with Mike Rockenfeller, Logan Sargeant, and Tom Blomqvist, but he accumulated the most mileage in the still unnamed LMDh chassis, which runs a 5.4-liter Coyote V8.
Also present at Paul Ricard were Seb Priaulx and Nick Yelloly, the pair confirmed for the car’s FIA World Endurance Championship debut next year.
Campbell noted that the test had gone smoothly, while admitting Ford still faces a lengthy road ahead.
“I’ve seen fans online rave about how impressive the sound is, but from inside the cockpit it’s on another level – utterly deafening,” he added.
“I’m genuinely excited about what lies ahead with this car.”
“Aside from a few minor teething issues—which you’d expect at the start of a new program—everything has gone well.”
“From here on, the workload will ramp up: I’ll return to the USA for three days of simulator work before coming back to Europe for the next test.”
Sargeant added: “Starting from the position we did is a huge credit to the team. There have already been countless hours poured into this project, including a lot of time in the simulator, so we’ve had a substantial head start.”
“Now the objective is to ensure everything comes together flawlessly, and that’s our next step. We can honestly say we’ve started in the best possible way.”
Ford has confirmed that the next on-track session will take place at Portimão at the start of September, followed by additional running at Silverstone, Monza, Imola and Motorland Aragon before heading to the United States to test at Circuit of the Americas and Sebring International Raceway.
“Reaching Paul Ricard and guiding the car through its shakedown and three full days of running is precisely the milestone we set out to achieve,” stated Dan Sayers, Ford Racing WEC Hypercar program manager.
“Everything we did in the lead-up—dyno work in Dearborn, the startup in France, the countless hours in the simulator—was aimed at ensuring that when we finally hit the track, the car would be ready to plug in and perform.”
“There remains a long list of milestones before Q1 2027, but the past couple of weeks have given the team confidence and a solid foundation to build on.”
