Ford Performance will be under new leadership in 2018

I read the article this morning and kept waiting for the new guy(s) to be announced. Ok he's gone..now what? :idunno: I guess slow news day
 
This is funny because Ford always has been flaky with its racing programs.

Haas back to GM.
 
Kiante said:
I think Hackett wants to cut back on the Performance division some, he's into the electric cars and such.

Formula E Ford team within the next couple of years? Lol
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They are all getting forced by uncle sugar to go electric. The gov has made it almost impossible for a gas/diesel engine to run on nothing and produce nothing. Because the electric producing industry doesn't pollute..it's clean right?:rolleyes:
 
From what I remember of what @Allenbaba has said is that often time support from a sponsor or manufacturer is contingent on how big a fan the person responsible for writing the checks is. I think Danica Patrick would be racing next year with SHR in GoDaddy colors if her benefactor was still with the company and I am sure this sort of thing has happened many times. It would be interesting to know if the Dodge division of Fiat has suffered as a result of not being involved with Nascar. Does Honda suffer against its rival Toyota because it has no Nascar presence? Can you even quantify the value of being associated with Nascar or is it basically smoke and mirrors?
 
The new CEO of Ford created a division called "Team Edison" with a 4.5 billion dollars commitment for ev vehicles to take on Tesla.I am not sure how much NASCAR or racing in general he considers to be a good investment.It will be interesting to look back 10 years from now and see which car manufacturers made the best decisions.
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
For those interested in this kind of stuff.....

https://www.motorsport.com/nascar-cup/news/nascar-ford-performance-pericak-director-967352/
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Ford performance has been followng Chevrolet longer than most people here has been a live.
Once they master winning two titles in a roll, or just 2 out of 3 years.... Hell just make it 2 out 5 years (still an seemly impossible Ford stretch goal, you has to have a Chevrolet to do that kind of Jimmie high five time stuff) anyhow once they perform, I will consider the notion that they ain't being led by Chevrolet, the winner of approx 723 MENCs etc....
 
Pat Patterson (big Ford guy) on NASCAR Radio said that he felt that when Ford went from "Ford Racing" to "Ford Performance" which united all of Ford's global racing under one banner might have spread itself too thin. While Ford experienced great success globally (i.e. Lemans), it has suffered on the NASCAR side. I thought that his take was an interesting perspective. Ford Performance now differs from the TRD model in that TRD is strictly North American racing with the priority emphasis on NASCAR. Same goes for the Driver Development Program. Ford now is global, and while Pericak tried to start a Driver Development Program, I think it has stalled a bit with the elimination of Kez's Truck program. Roush has the young gun car in Xfinity, however. It will be interesting to see where Rushbrook and Salenbach take the program. For those keeping score....Chevy's program is called Hendrick. Period....and the Driver Development Program for Chevy is whatever they can take from Toyota and Ford IMO.
 
Revman said:
Pat Patterson (big Ford guy) on NASCAR Radio said that he felt that when Ford went from "Ford Racing" to "Ford Performance" which united all of Ford's global racing under one banner might have spread itself too thin. While Ford experienced great success globally (i.e. Lemans), it has suffered on the NASCAR side. I thought that his take was an interesting perspective. Ford Performance now differs from the TRD model in that TRD is strictly North American racing with the priority emphasis on NASCAR. Same goes for the Driver Development Program. Ford now is global, and while Pericak tried to start a Driver Development Program, I think it has stalled a bit with the elimination of Kez's Truck program. Roush has the young gun car in Xfinity, however. It will be interesting to see where Rushbrook and Salenbach take the program. For those keeping score....Chevy's program is called Hendrick. Period....and the Driver Development Program for Chevy is whatever they can take from Toyota and Ford IMO.
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Chevy/HMS have run their development program like the Yankees...let the other teams draft and develop, then outbid on the talent that pans out... Why waste time/money on cultivating an asset, when you can let other teams do it for you and then procure said asset with more lucrative contact/endorsement offers.
 
3wideinturn1 said:
Chevy/HMS have run their development program like the Yankees...let the other teams draft and develop, then outbid on the talent that pans out... Why waste time/money on cultivating an asset, when you can let other teams do it for you and then procure said asset with more lucrative contact/endorsement offers.
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Well said.
 
3wideinturn1 said:
Chevy/HMS have run their development program like the Yankees...let the other teams draft and develop, then outbid on the talent that pans out... Why waste time/money on cultivating an asset, when you can let other teams do it for you and then procure said asset with more lucrative contact/endorsement offers.
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I would dispute that statement very much. HMS spent a LOT of time and a LOT of money trying to develop drivers, it's just most of them turned out not to be very good. Here's a list of those that actually made it to Cup.

Geoff Bodine: Talented, but unproven. Bodine actively courted Hendrick for the job.
Tim Richmond: erratic, a diamond in the rough.
Darrell Waltrip: Big name free agent, but really past his prime.
Benny Parsons: Already semi-retired super-sub.
Ken Shrader: Another diamond in the rough that never quite got past the sandpaper stage.
Ricky Rudd: Solid journeyman that had never threatened for a title.
Terry Labonte: Most people said he was washed up and was driving for teams like the almost defunct Billy Hagen and Richard Jackson teams.
Jeff Gordon: Easy to call him a superstar free agent, but he was a VERY unfinished product when he got to HMS. Two years of filling a junkyard full of cars shows that.
Ricky Craven: Highly touted prospect, was still a work in progress, sadly never got to see to fruition.
Wally Dallenbach: Very modestly talented journeyman hired to please the sponsor after Craven's injury. Sponsor left anyway.
Jerry Nadeau: Totally over his head, he was hired because he brought the sponsor.
Jimmie Johnson: Was starting to get a few job offers, but was a REAL leap of faith.
Joe Nemechek: Solid journeyman. Hired to keep the seat warm.
Brian Vickers: A total nobody until Ricky Hendrick discovered him in the Busch Series.
Kyle Busch: A prodigy, but still an unproven 16 year old kid that Jack Roush didn't care enough about to keep. As much of a development driver as Byron or Elliott.
Casy Mears: A warm body to fill the seat until a better option presented itself.
Dale Earnhardt Jr: A true big name free agent, but like the Darrell before him and Kasey after him, never lived up to the hype.
Mark Martin: A legend, but already semi-retired, not really any other viable places for him to go.
Brad Keselowski: The development driver that got away. You have to wonder how different HMS would be if BK stays in the fold.
Kasey Kahne. Big named free agent, looked like a can't miss, but did anyway.
Chase Elliott: A true JRM /HMS development driver. Ford had first dibs, wasn't interested.
William Byron: Another true JRM development guy, even though he was farmed out for a couple of years. He was always on the HMS radar.
Alex Bowman: Not a development driver, but HMS resurrected his career. Nobody else was knocking on his door.
 
Formerjackman said:
Alex Bowman: Not a development driver, but HMS resurrected his career. Nobody else was knocking on his door.
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Still don't understand the love he gets, he didnt really set the world on fire so far in the Cup Series, heck, his first top 10 didnt come till he was subbing for Jr. lets see what he can do with a full time ride at HMS
 
Formerjackman said:
I would dispute that statement very much. HMS spent a LOT of time and a LOT of money trying to develop drivers, it's just most of them turned out not to be very good. Here's a list of those that actually made it to Cup.

Geoff Bodine: Talented, but unproven. Bodine actively courted Hendrick for the job.
Tim Richmond: erratic, a diamond in the rough.
Darrell Waltrip: Big name free agent, but really past his prime.
Benny Parsons: Already semi-retired super-sub.
Ken Shrader: Another diamond in the rough that never quite got past the sandpaper stage.
Ricky Rudd: Solid journeyman that had never threatened for a title.
Terry Labonte: Most people said he was washed up and was driving for teams like the almost defunct Billy Hagen and Richard Jackson teams.
Jeff Gordon: Easy to call him a superstar free agent, but he was a VERY unfinished product when he got to HMS. Two years of filling a junkyard full of cars shows that.
Ricky Craven: Highly touted prospect, was still a work in progress, sadly never got to see to fruition.
Wally Dallenbach: Very modestly talented journeyman hired to please the sponsor after Craven's injury. Sponsor left anyway.
Jerry Nadeau: Totally over his head, he was hired because he brought the sponsor.
Jimmie Johnson: Was starting to get a few job offers, but was a REAL leap of faith.
Joe Nemechek: Solid journeyman. Hired to keep the seat warm.
Brian Vickers: A total nobody until Ricky Hendrick discovered him in the Busch Series.
Kyle Busch: A prodigy, but still an unproven 16 year old kid that Jack Roush didn't care enough about to keep. As much of a development driver as Byron or Elliott.
Casy Mears: A warm body to fill the seat until a better option presented itself.
Dale Earnhardt Jr: A true big name free agent, but like the Darrell before him and Kasey after him, never lived up to the hype.
Mark Martin: A legend, but already semi-retired, not really any other viable places for him to go.
Brad Keselowski: The development driver that got away. You have to wonder how different HMS would be if BK stays in the fold.
Kasey Kahne. Big named free agent, looked like a can't miss, but did anyway.
Chase Elliott: A true JRM /HMS development driver. Ford had first dibs, wasn't interested.
William Byron: Another true JRM development guy, even though he was farmed out for a couple of years. He was always on the HMS radar.
Alex Bowman: Not a development driver, but HMS resurrected his career. Nobody else was knocking on his door.
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Like you said, there were several guys they tried to develop in the Busch Series who didn't work out.....Boston Reid, Blake Feese, etc.

Of all the drivers for HMS, the only hire I didn't initially like was Dallenbach. I didn't think he deserved it and never really cared for him much at all.
 
jws926 said:
Still don't understand the love he gets, he didnt really set the world on fire so far in the Cup Series, heck, his first top 10 didnt come till he was subbing for Jr. lets see what he can do with a full time ride at HMS
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Well I don't think (m)any drivers are going to rack up Top 10s with BK Racing and Tommy Baldwin Racing.
 
jws926 said:
Still don't understand the love he gets, he didnt really set the world on fire so far in the Cup Series, heck, his first top 10 didnt come till he was subbing for Jr. lets see what he can do with a full time ride at HMS
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He outperformed Earnhardt and Gordon in the same car. He earned his shot. Whether he is a long term success or not, who knows? Who would have guessed Kasey Kahne would be a flop at HMS? Who would have guessed JJ would be a seven time champion? Certainly not me, and next to his parents, I was probably his biggest fan....
 
2 Sweet said:
Like you said, there were several guys they tried to develop in the Busch Series who didn't work out.....Boston Reid, Blake Feese, etc.

Of all the drivers for HMS, the only hire I didn't initially like was Dallenbach. I didn't think he deserved it and never really cared for him much at all.
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I think Hendrick was just between a rock and a hard place on that one. Budweiser was tired of waiting to see if Craven would be able to return to form and had grown tired of the revolving door of fill in drivers. Wally was good looking, fit the demographic, had Cup experience, and was available. I never liked that hire very much though, even though I thought he was a nice guy and I had always admired his dad. I really wanted to see Jack Sprague get that ride full time, although who knows how that would have went. Jack was VERY GOOD in one situation, (in the 24 truck with Dennis Connor on the box) and pretty mediocre everywhere else. The hire I HATED was Nadeau. I felt like at best be would be a very mediocre talent, and I was right, although in fairness to him, injury cut short his career. I thought Vickers got rushed to Cup too soon, but I think that was mostly sponsor driven. I also didn't like the Casey Mears hire, even though I really like him and have huge respect for his family. I just didn't think he was good enough for that job.
 
jws926 said:
Still don't understand the love he gets, he didnt really set the world on fire so far in the Cup Series, heck, his first top 10 didnt come till he was subbing for Jr. lets see what he can do with a full time ride at HMS
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I don't either, but we are going to find out in a couple of months.....
 
Formerjackman said:
I would dispute that statement very much. HMS spent a LOT of time and a LOT of money trying to develop drivers, it's just most of them turned out not to be very good. Here's a list of those that actually made it to Cup.

Geoff Bodine: Talented, but unproven. Bodine actively courted Hendrick for the job.
Tim Richmond: erratic, a diamond in the rough.
Darrell Waltrip: Big name free agent, but really past his prime.
Benny Parsons: Already semi-retired super-sub.
Ken Shrader: Another diamond in the rough that never quite got past the sandpaper stage.
Ricky Rudd: Solid journeyman that had never threatened for a title.
Terry Labonte: Most people said he was washed up and was driving for teams like the almost defunct Billy Hagen and Richard Jackson teams.
Jeff Gordon: Easy to call him a superstar free agent, but he was a VERY unfinished product when he got to HMS. Two years of filling a junkyard full of cars shows that.
Ricky Craven: Highly touted prospect, was still a work in progress, sadly never got to see to fruition.
Wally Dallenbach: Very modestly talented journeyman hired to please the sponsor after Craven's injury. Sponsor left anyway.
Jerry Nadeau: Totally over his head, he was hired because he brought the sponsor.
Jimmie Johnson: Was starting to get a few job offers, but was a REAL leap of faith.
Joe Nemechek: Solid journeyman. Hired to keep the seat warm.
Brian Vickers: A total nobody until Ricky Hendrick discovered him in the Busch Series.
Kyle Busch: A prodigy, but still an unproven 16 year old kid that Jack Roush didn't care enough about to keep. As much of a development driver as Byron or Elliott.
Casy Mears: A warm body to fill the seat until a better option presented itself.
Dale Earnhardt Jr: A true big name free agent, but like the Darrell before him and Kasey after him, never lived up to the hype.
Mark Martin: A legend, but already semi-retired, not really any other viable places for him to go.
Brad Keselowski: The development driver that got away. You have to wonder how different HMS would be if BK stays in the fold.
Kasey Kahne. Big named free agent, looked like a can't miss, but did anyway.
Chase Elliott: A true JRM /HMS development driver. Ford had first dibs, wasn't interested.
William Byron: Another true JRM development guy, even though he was farmed out for a couple of years. He was always on the HMS radar.
Alex Bowman: Not a development driver, but HMS resurrected his career. Nobody else was knocking on his door.
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Great post, but Chevy/Hendrick doesn't have a formalized (and funded) program like Toyota and to a lesser extent Ford do right now.
 
Formerjackman said:
I would dispute that statement very much. HMS spent a LOT of time and a LOT of money trying to develop drivers, it's just most of them turned out not to be very good. Here's a list of those that actually made it to Cup.

Geoff Bodine: Talented, but unproven. Bodine actively courted Hendrick for the job.
Tim Richmond: erratic, a diamond in the rough.
Darrell Waltrip: Big name free agent, but really past his prime.
Benny Parsons: Already semi-retired super-sub.
Ken Shrader: Another diamond in the rough that never quite got past the sandpaper stage.
Ricky Rudd: Solid journeyman that had never threatened for a title.
Terry Labonte: Most people said he was washed up and was driving for teams like the almost defunct Billy Hagen and Richard Jackson teams.
Jeff Gordon: Easy to call him a superstar free agent, but he was a VERY unfinished product when he got to HMS. Two years of filling a junkyard full of cars shows that.
Ricky Craven: Highly touted prospect, was still a work in progress, sadly never got to see to fruition.
Wally Dallenbach: Very modestly talented journeyman hired to please the sponsor after Craven's injury. Sponsor left anyway.
Jerry Nadeau: Totally over his head, he was hired because he brought the sponsor.
Jimmie Johnson: Was starting to get a few job offers, but was a REAL leap of faith.
Joe Nemechek: Solid journeyman. Hired to keep the seat warm.
Brian Vickers: A total nobody until Ricky Hendrick discovered him in the Busch Series.
Kyle Busch: A prodigy, but still an unproven 16 year old kid that Jack Roush didn't care enough about to keep. As much of a development driver as Byron or Elliott.
Casy Mears: A warm body to fill the seat until a better option presented itself.
Dale Earnhardt Jr: A true big name free agent, but like the Darrell before him and Kasey after him, never lived up to the hype.
Mark Martin: A legend, but already semi-retired, not really any other viable places for him to go.
Brad Keselowski: The development driver that got away. You have to wonder how different HMS would be if BK stays in the fold.
Kasey Kahne. Big named free agent, looked like a can't miss, but did anyway.
Chase Elliott: A true JRM /HMS development driver. Ford had first dibs, wasn't interested.
William Byron: Another true JRM development guy, even though he was farmed out for a couple of years. He was always on the HMS radar.
Alex Bowman: Not a development driver, but HMS resurrected his career. Nobody else was knocking on his door.
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Just based on the more recent years, if you are considering names like Casey Mears, Mark Martin, Dale Jr, Kasey Kahne, Alex Bowman or even William Byron as drivers HMS “developed”, then I just can’t agree...I could make an argument that outside of Chase Elliott, HMS has not made a significant investment in any development driver for over a decade.
 
Revman said:
Great post, but Chevy/Hendrick doesn't have a formalized (and funded) program like Toyota and to a lesser extent Ford do right now.
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Yep, hence my comments. It’s worked for them up to this point...Although the landscape may be shifting, like other sports; the emphasis on drafting/developing cost controlled talent in house has never been more at a premium. Parity will do that.
 
Toyota seems to be leaps and bounds past everyone. Their presence in sprint cars, arca and the truck series is awfully impressive. It’s the in thing to be a young gun in a Toyota
 
HMS does fine with what they do. They acquire and plug guys in when needed, instead of having drivers in line to take seats. Their methods have led to a team that makes a good case for the most future - proof 4 car lineup in the sport right now.
 
FLRacingFan said:
Well I don't think (m)any drivers are going to rack up Top 10s with BK Racing and Tommy Baldwin Racing.
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No kidding :laugh:, so again, I dont understand the love for him came from, it was there before he filled in for Jr
Formerjackman said:
He outperformed Earnhardt and Gordon in the same car. He earned his shot. Whether he is a long term success or not, who knows? Who would have guessed Kasey Kahne would be a flop at HMS? Who would have guessed JJ would be a seven time champion? Certainly not me, and next to his parents, I was probably his biggest fan....
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LOL one top 10 and he earned his spot?, wow the bar is set pretty low then.

You will have to excuse me, I did not purchase my ticket for the Bowman bandwagon, sure he did fairly well filling in Jr, I am just really unsure on him, gonna be a fun year watching what he can do.
Revman said:
I don't either, but we are going to find out in a couple of months.....
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I hope he has a good first year at HMS.
 
jws926 said:
LOL one top 10 and he earned his spot?, wow the bar is set pretty low then.

You will have to excuse me, I did not purchase my ticket for the Bowman bandwagon, sure he did fairly well filling in Jr, I am just really unsure on him, gonna be a fun year watching what he can do.
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Nearly won at Phoenix as a sub driver in an iffy car.
 
Formerjackman said:
I would dispute that statement very much. HMS spent a LOT of time and a LOT of money trying to develop drivers, it's just most of them turned out not to be very good. Here's a list of those that actually made it to Cup.

Geoff Bodine: Talented, but unproven. Bodine actively courted Hendrick for the job.
Tim Richmond: erratic, a diamond in the rough.
Darrell Waltrip: Big name free agent, but really past his prime.
Benny Parsons: Already semi-retired super-sub.
Ken Shrader: Another diamond in the rough that never quite got past the sandpaper stage.
Ricky Rudd: Solid journeyman that had never threatened for a title.
Terry Labonte: Most people said he was washed up and was driving for teams like the almost defunct Billy Hagen and Richard Jackson teams.
Jeff Gordon: Easy to call him a superstar free agent, but he was a VERY unfinished product when he got to HMS. Two years of filling a junkyard full of cars shows that.
Ricky Craven: Highly touted prospect, was still a work in progress, sadly never got to see to fruition.
Wally Dallenbach: Very modestly talented journeyman hired to please the sponsor after Craven's injury. Sponsor left anyway.
Jerry Nadeau: Totally over his head, he was hired because he brought the sponsor.
Jimmie Johnson: Was starting to get a few job offers, but was a REAL leap of faith.
Joe Nemechek: Solid journeyman. Hired to keep the seat warm.
Brian Vickers: A total nobody until Ricky Hendrick discovered him in the Busch Series.
Kyle Busch: A prodigy, but still an unproven 16 year old kid that Jack Roush didn't care enough about to keep. As much of a development driver as Byron or Elliott.
Casy Mears: A warm body to fill the seat until a better option presented itself.
Dale Earnhardt Jr: A true big name free agent, but like the Darrell before him and Kasey after him, never lived up to the hype.
Mark Martin: A legend, but already semi-retired, not really any other viable places for him to go.
Brad Keselowski: The development driver that got away. You have to wonder how different HMS would be if BK stays in the fold.
Kasey Kahne. Big named free agent, looked like a can't miss, but did anyway.
Chase Elliott: A true JRM /HMS development driver. Ford had first dibs, wasn't interested.
William Byron: Another true JRM development guy, even though he was farmed out for a couple of years. He was always on the HMS radar.
Alex Bowman: Not a development driver, but HMS resurrected his career. Nobody else was knocking on his door.
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Byron was with JRM before he was with Toyota.
Mispeedway15 said:
Toyota seems to be leaps and bounds past everyone. Their presence in sprint cars, arca and the truck series is awfully impressive. It’s the in thing to be a young gun in a Toyota
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Toyota is gonna dominate far more than Chevy used to. They're 100 percent committed invested, the others are not.
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
Byron was with JRM before he was with Toyota.
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Was he even really with Toyota? Byron needed a quality truck ride & had money. KBM had a truck & needed money. Always going to be in a Hendrick ride IMO.
AndyMarquisLive said:
Toyota is gonna dominate far more than Chevy used to. They're 100 percent committed invested, the others are not.
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David Wilson is a quiet, understated leader who also happens to be a fierce competitor IMO. I think (hope) you are right.
 
Formerjackman said:
I think Hendrick was just between a rock and a hard place on that one. Budweiser was tired of waiting to see if Craven would be able to return to form and had grown tired of the revolving door of fill in drivers. Wally was good looking, fit the demographic, had Cup experience, and was available. I never liked that hire very much though, even though I thought he was a nice guy and I had always admired his dad. I really wanted to see Jack Sprague get that ride full time, although who knows how that would have went. Jack was VERY GOOD in one situation, (in the 24 truck with Dennis Connor on the box) and pretty mediocre everywhere else. The hire I HATED was Nadeau. I felt like at best be would be a very mediocre talent, and I was right, although in fairness to him, injury cut short his career. I thought Vickers got rushed to Cup too soon, but I think that was mostly sponsor driven. I also didn't like the Casey Mears hire, even though I really like him and have huge respect for his family. I just didn't think he was good enough for that job.
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I also wanted Sprague to get the 25. I wasn't crazy about the Nadeau hire either but he ended up outperforming anyone else that had driven the 25 car in several years.

Dallenbach was bad at every stop, including Roush. Great road course driver but that's about it. Nowhere near good enough for a Hendrick car IMO.
 
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