Ford has announced the Ford Mustang Cup will take place as a national series in Australia across six rounds in 2026 – a breeding ground for future talent – and is seeking expressions of interest from would-be competitors.
Using the formidable Ford Mustang Dark Horse R racing model, a field of around 20-25 competitors is expected in the first expansion of the series beyond the United States, where it kicked off in 2024.
“Mustang holds a special place in the hearts of Australians, and a dedicated one-make series featuring the Dark Horse R is a natural and incredibly exciting fit for our market,” said Andrew Birkic, Ford Australia president and CEO, in a statement.
“This new championship provides a clear pathway for aspiring drivers and adds another thrilling dimension to the Mustang’s legendary racing heritage down under.”
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The Dark Horse R takes the Mustang Dark Horse road car a step further by adding 18-inch forged alloy wheels with slick racing tyres, bigger Brembo brakes and a larger exhaust from renowned specialist Borla.
There’s no additional power from the 5.0-litre V8 – making a claimed ‘more than 500 horsepower (373kW)’ – which is teamed with a Tremec 3160 six-speed manual gearbox and Torsen limited-slip differential.
The Dark Horse R’s race-readiness is capped off with a Recaro racing seat approved by the FIA – the governing body of global motorsport.
Mustang Cup cars come to Australia through Miedecke Motorsport, Australian agents for Multimatic – the company behind the Dark Horse R as well as a host of Ford Performance models, including the 2016 Le Mans-winning Ford GT race and road cars.
The cost of a Mustang Cup Dark Horse R is, according to Ford Performance, $US159,000 ($242,700).
The lower-spec 2024 Mustang Dark Horse with a manual gearbox is currently priced at $98,017 before on-road costs, with the automatic at $101,917 before on-roads.
The Ford series is expected to cost less than the Porsche Carrera Cup, both a national and global one-make racing series using the Porsche 911 which is speculated at around $1 million per year to compete in.
Showroom rival Toyota – which will compete against Ford in the Supercars championship with its Supra sports car from 2026 – also runs a national one-make series in Australia, the Gazoo Racing Cup (GR Cup).
It’s also designed to develop young racing talent, with current Supercars championship leader, Broc Feeney, one of its star graduates, having won his first race in the Toyota series as a 15-year-old in 2018.
The GR Cup uses the much-lauded Toyota GR86 sports car, with a 2.4-litre four-cylinder engine, but in the V8 Dark Horse R the Mustang Cup will offer a more powerful, faster race car closer to ‘higher’ series such as the Super 2 category, one step down from Supercars.
“The Mustang Dark Horse R was designed to be a turnkey race car to provide a thrilling, accessible, and competitive platform for drivers,” said the global director of Ford Performance, Mark Rushbrook, in a statement.
“Seeing it embraced by our team in Australia and set to form a new national championship is fantastic.
Rushbrook pointed to 20-year-old Australian racer, Cameron McLeod, who won two Mustang Dark Horse R races at the 2025 Le Mans 24 Hours earlier this month.
The races were part of the US-based 2025 IMSA Ford Mustang Challenge.
“The success of Cameron McLeod at Le Mans showed the world what talented young drivers can do in this car and bringing that level of competition to Australia is a vital addition to the global Mustang racing ecosystem,” he said.
The Ford Mustang ecosystem is extensive, with the US car giant offering customer racing versions of the iconic V8-powered sports car in multiple categories, including GT4, GT3 and Supercars racing in Australia.