New Ford Raptor to be driven by big names

By Thomas Miles

Date posted: 16 November 2022

Some big names will be behind the wheel of Ford Performance’s new Next-Gen Ranger Raptor race truck at this year’s Baja 1000.

The three driver team will steer the new race truck built by Kelly Racing in the Stock Mid-Size class for production vehicles in the event beginning in Ensenada, Mexico, which also features Australian stars Toby Price and Paul Weel.

But some other big names will taking on the famous rally for the Blue Oval headlined by Brad Lovell.

Lovell is one of the most versatile racers in the American off-road scene and is no stranger to success at the brutal Baja event.

He has been a champion in short course, ULTRA4 and rock racing, plus scored victories in desert racing and hill climbs.

In total Lovell has won nine championships and more than 35 victories with the latest on board a Ford Bronco in the 4600 Stock Class in the 2022 Ultra4 season finale.

Brad Lovell will lead Ford’s Baja 1000 assault. Image: Supplied

Despite achieving enough to to be inducted into the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame, Lovell feels the weight of taking on such a big event for such a prestigious brand.

“I love racing down in Baja. I have a lot of experience racing at Baja, but I still feel like a novice, and I always want more. I’m a student of Baja.

“With the Baja 1000 this year there’s a lot of pressure. This is a big deal. It’s an important program to Ford Motor Company. It’s very important that we execute things safely, professionally and on point with Ford but really, you know, we’re just having fun and if we can have fun within those boundaries and make sure we get to the finish line on time on race day, that’s our mission.”

“This is also a very important experience to me to have my son Byam race with me down here. I didn’t just pick him because he’s my son. He has race experience down in Baja as a navigator and a couple Baja 500 wins. So, this is a pretty neat deal to have him be part of a Ford ef fort in the Baja 1000.”

Lovell will be joined by another winning machine in Jason Gutter.

Hunter has scored success in the SCORE, BITD, SNORE, CODE, RECORD, NORRA and BORE off-road endurance racing series and when he is not racing he is either doing driver training for Ford or being a battalion chief for the Snowmass Village fire service in Colorado.

“I’m really excited to be here with the Ford Ranger Raptor. It’s neat to see that Australia’s come up with this project and putting it through the Baja 1000,” he said.

“The team that we put together for this is pretty incredible. To get push that truck through the 1000 is going to be awesome.

“I’d say the main challenge will be finding a pace that gives us the speed we need to win the race, but also the pace we need to keep the truck together. “

“We’ve already found that the durability on this truck is pretty amazing.”

Loren Healy hopes to achieve more success at the Baja 1000 with Ford.

The decorated Loren Healy brings one of the most consistent and decorated off-road racing records to the Blue Oval.

Healy is a two-time King of Hammers and five-time ULTRA4 racing champion and took the off-road world by storm by winning the 2010 KOH on progressional debut.

Four years later he became the only driver ever to score multiple KOH wins and is excited by the challenge the Baja 1000 presents.

“I absolutely love racing Baja and I’m so excited for this Ford Raptor racing program,” he said.

“It’s so cool for Ford to be involved with anything down in Baja and to be chosen to be a part of this as a huge honour for me.

“I’ve been racing off-road for about 15 years, you know King of the Hammers, Ultra4, that’s what I do. But Baja definitely, like everybody, has a special place in your heart. There’s nowhere else on earth like it.

“Being involved with the 4600 stock Broncos that race King of the Hammers and ULTRA4 all year, the Ford performance team has really figured out the formula on coming out durability testing, keeping everything super organised and having that exact formula to have a truck that’s durability tested that’s going to be perfect. That’s got all the miles put on it so that when we get down to Baja that we know we have the perfect truck.”

The star-studded team is completed by team manager Curt LeDuc and team navigator Danny Brown, who will also be along for the ride.

For more of the latest motorsport news pick up the latest issue of Auto Action.

AUTO ACTION, Australia’s independent voice of motorsport.

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