Ford teams hit out at Supercars parity ahead of Bathurst

The Ford teams competing in the Supercars Championship have come together to hit out at ongoing parity issues between the Gen3 Mustang and the Camaro after a request for changes ahead of the Bathurst 1000 was denied.

Ford teams had requested further changes to the regulations to try and ensure parity between the two cars, which has been something of a bone of contention throughout the season as the Camaro has very much been the package to beat.

Unsurprisingly, the various Chevrolet teams refused to allow for changes to be made outside an official parity review, leaving the Ford teams in what they say will be an ‘unacceptable position’ fir the biggest event on the Supercars calendar.

“Following ongoing analysis, Supercars, in conjunction with its independent CFD partner, D2H Group, have acknowledged that there continues to be a disparity between the Gen3 Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Camaro,” the statement read.

“Therefore, technical parity has still not been achieved. Unfortunately, the proposed aerodynamic changes to the Ford Mustang, which have been acknowledged by all parties involved to reduce the delta between the two models, will not be implemented for the Bathurst 1000 this weekend.

“The independent data shows that the Mustang will be at a continued disadvantage for the biggest race of the year, which we believe is unacceptable – and not what our sport is built upon.

“While disappointed in the situation, every Ford team will be doing their utmost this weekend, it’s what the fans deserve, it’s what our partners deserve, it’s what the Great Race deserves.

“We will continue working together to correct the imbalance going forward, but now, our attention turns on track, respecting the challenge that the Mountain provides.”

The series responded however to insist that the threshold for a parity review had not been met and that the decision was in line with the regulations.

“Throughout the year, our teams have followed, and Supercars has administered, a Parity Review System for the Repco Supercars Championship,” a statement read. “This system serves as the process for evaluating and implementing parity adjustments under the rules and regulations for the category.

“The Parity Review System has a trigger point of a potential parity imbalance being demonstrated in five consecutive races or five out of eight consecutive races.

“The prescribed number of parity triggers showcasing a parity imbalance, as outlined in the system, have not been met at this time and there is no scope for a parity adjustment to be made for the Bathurst 1000 under the Parity Review System.

“Supercars received a request from the Ford Homologation Team to implement a parity adjustment in advance of the Repco Bathurst 1000 outside of the Parity Review System.

“Supercars considered the request in accordance with the terms of the Teams Racing Charter and the Supercars rules and regulations, which require the consent from all Supercars Teams to implement the requested parity adjustment change.

“After numerous meetings with all Teams and key stakeholders, the requisite consent from the Supercars Teams has not been established to support the requested parity adjustment for the 2023 Repco Bathurst 1000.

“We value the input and perspectives of all involved parties and aim to continue working in a manner that preserves the integrity of our sport and the rules and regulations that govern it.”