Ford has confirmed it has already opened conversations with Max Verstappen about a future role in its incoming FIA World Endurance Championship hypercar programme, in the strongest sign yet that the four-time Formula 1 world champion's flirtation with sportscar racing could become something far more concrete.
The acknowledgement came from Mark Rushbrook, Ford Performance's global director, as the manufacturer mapped out a phased return to top-level endurance racing. Ford will field customer Mustangs in the LMGT3 class through 2026 before stepping up to its own LMDh prototype in the Hypercar division from 2027, and Rushbrook made clear that Verstappen has been on the radar from the start.
Speaking about the Dutchman's interest in racing beyond Formula 1, Rushbrook said: "He is a great competitor and a great person. We are very happy that he has a passion for GT3 racing and that he is involved in the development of drivers through simulation."
Ford has been careful not to overstate where the conversations sit. Asked directly whether anything was close to being signed, Rushbrook offered only that "nothing has been announced." Privately, however, the manufacturer has indicated that Verstappen's value to its endurance push would be "incalculable" both on track and in development work, where the Red Bull driver has earned a reputation as a fierce simulator presence.
The political reality is more complicated. Verstappen's contract with Red Bull Racing runs through 2028 and includes restrictions on parallel commitments in front-line championships. Any factory drive at Le Mans or in a full WEC campaign would need explicit clearance from Christian Horner's team, and would have to fit around the Formula 1 calendar's increasingly suffocating schedule.
That has not stopped Verstappen from edging closer to the discipline. He has tested a Ferrari 296 GT3 at private Italian circuits, raced in the Nürburgring Endurance Series under his Verstappen.com Racing banner, and recently sampled the Acura ARX-06 LMDh at Thermal in a closely watched outing that Honda's IMSA team described as flawless. Verstappen drove the Ford Mustang GTD with Chris Harris last year at Calabogie, an exercise widely interpreted at the time as a soft-launch flirtation between driver and brand.
Ford's 2026 customer programme will give the Blue Oval its first taste of FIA WEC racing since Ganassi-run GT efforts ended at the close of 2019. The manufacturer is expected to confirm its LMDh chassis partner in the second half of this year, with the prototype's first major shakedown pencilled in for early 2027.
For Verstappen, the timing of any move is the genuine sticking point. Sources close to the driver say his preferred path remains a part-time WEC tilt that includes the Le Mans 24 Hours rather than a full-season commitment, an arrangement Toyota explored briefly with Fernando Alonso before backing away. Whether Ford can stretch a calendar to suit a sitting F1 champion remains the live question.
What is no longer in doubt is the direction of travel. Ford has put Verstappen on its shortlist, Verstappen has put endurance racing on his to-do list, and the manufacturer has confirmed in public what the WEC paddock has whispered for months: the talks are real, and the Blue Oval is serious about putting the Dutchman in its hypercar.
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*Originally published on [Motorsports Global](https://motorsports.global/article/ford-verstappen-wec-hypercar-talks-rushbrook-2026). Visit for full coverage.*
