Ford could be back on the grid later in the year

The Ford Focus S2000 TCs built by Arena Motorsport could be back on the grid later this season in the hands of a new team to the Championship, TouringCarTimes understands.

UK-based Arena International Motorsport built three cars, two of which were raced by Tom Chilton and James Nash in 2012, before the team went into liquidation during the off season.

A new buyer for the three S2000-spec Ford Focuses plans to run the cars as early as the final rounds of the European half of the season, otherwise definitely for the fly-away portion of the year, which kicks off in South America in early August.

The cars will run with Arena’s planned 2013 upgrade package and will test in the UK ahead of their return to the Championship, which would bring the number of brands on the grid up to six.

The cars have already been cleared for competition in 2013 by a decision of the FIA Touring Car Commission in January.