Ford has today announced that the Ranger Raptor will tackle the SCORE International Baja 1000 – one of the toughest off-road races in the world. It will be racing on a low-carbon biofuel, demonstrating the potential of these fuels in the most demanding environments.
Ford Performance worked with Australia’s Kelly Racing to build the Baja-ready Ranger Raptor, while US-based Lovell Racing will race the truck at the event, which begins on November 18.
Lovell Racing, led by off road racing icon Brad Lovell, is one of Ford Performance’s key off-road teams.
“By entering this event, we’re building on the hundreds of thousands of kilometres of development testing, and pushing the Ranger Raptor to new extremes,” Ford Performance off-road motorsports supervisor Brian Novak said.
“The Baja 1000 is a demanding event and a well-known proving ground for off-road vehicles,” he added. “We are excited to compete in this extreme event with Ranger Raptor.”
The Baja 1000, held on the Baja California Peninsula, is considered one of the world’s most prestigious off-road races, attracting competitors from around the globe eager to take on its miles of treacherous desert terrain, steep drops and tough climbs.
In the past, both the F-150 Raptor and Ford Bronco have successfully raced at Baja, with a podium finish and even an outright victory forming part of a hearty history for Ford trucks. This time round, the Ranger Raptor will run in the stock class.
It will use Shell’s one-third blend of biofuel – with its mix of ethanol and bionaphtha.
“Demonstrating low-carbon fuels in performance settings like the Baja 1000 can help bring biofuels and other clean energy technologies to scale more quickly, and help to make them more available and affordable for everyone,” Ford’s global director of sustainability, compliance and homologation Cynthia Williams said.
Ford is working to achieve carbon neutrality globally across its vehicles, operations and supply chain no later than 2050 and to reach science-based interim targets by 2035.
As Ford launches electrified versions of its most popular nameplates, the company continues to research and develop alternative fuel options across all of its vehicles, including performance racing, to provide customers with efficient, low-carbon alternatives.
Alternative fuel vehicles can reduce GHG emissions compared to conventional fuel equivalents on a well-to-wheels basis, which includes emissions from both producing and consuming the fuels.
