DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Ford Racing has a mission in 2026. The NASCAR OEM partner is looking to get back to its winning ways after "missing it" in 2025.
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An understandable goal after a season in which Ford Racing drivers only accounted for seven wins across 38 races — 36 points-paying races and two exhibitions.
"From the Ford perspective, I'd say '25 was a miss for us," said Pat DiMarco, Ford Racing NASCAR and analytics manager, Friday at Daytona International Speedway. "Anytime you don't win, you reflect on that. Not having anybody in the final four at Phoenix was a miss.
"There were some highlights, though. Ryan Blaney was consistent and one of the best drivers all year long, and the way the playoff format plays out, he just didn't make it."
Blaney accounted for four of these wins while Joey Logano, Josh Berry, and Austin Cindric each scored one. All three RFK Racing drivers failed to win a race as they all missed the playoffs.
None of these Ford Racing drivers contended for the championship. Instead, they sat back and watched as Kyle Larson scored another championship win for Chevrolet and Hendrick Motorsports.
The wins took place at expected locations. Cindric and Blaney both won at superspeedways. Berry and Logano won at intermediate tracks. Blaney also scored wins at shorter oval tracks in New Hampshire, Nashville, and Phoenix.
None of the Ford drivers won at a road course last season. This snapped a two-year streak featuring Michael McDowell's win at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course (2023) and Chris Buescher's win at Watkins Glen International (2024).
"The superspeedway program, last night I think a testament to Doug (Yates) as he dug over there, and our cars are strong again," DiMarco added.
"So the superspeedway stuff last year, really good. Obviously the finishes are all chance, and our road course program, we've got to work on that this year, and we've got an effort going to really improve our road course program."
Will Ford Racing improve the road course program? Obviously, it will be hard to overthrow the Shane van Gisbergen dynasty, and the addition of Connor Zilisch will only make the Chevrolet lineup more formidable.
Yet, Ford Racing remains optimistic about the upcoming season and the opportunity to potentially win its fourth championship of the Gen 7 era. The associated drivers at Team Penske, Wood Brothers Racing, and RFK Racing just need to take advantage of the offseason work.
"Looking forward to a great '26 and more consistency across the board, which I think with the RFK cars running up front last night, Ryan Preece with the win at the Clash," DiMarco said. "I think there's some upside for '26 for the Ford Motor Company."
