The Story Behind the Cars:
"The Three from 1967"

The Ambition of Ford, and the Hope of Ferrari

In 1967, the motorsports world was buzzing with the excitement over the upcoming one-on-one shootout between Ford and Ferrari.

After trying unsuccessfully to buy out Ferrari four years earlier, Ford developed their own midship race car that they hoped would take the throne of sports car racing. They came with both fists swinging into the European world of racing, winning the LeMans in 1966. This was a first for an American car. And in 1967 they developed an even more powerful machine to maintain a firm grasp of their newly acquired throne: the 7-liter V8-powered Mark IV, producing 530ps.

Meanwhile, Ferrari was the hope of all Europeans rallying to "Defeat America" after the 1966 LeMans and take back the crown. They had been improving on their midship 330 P to combat Ford's Mark IV, and in 1966 the 330 P3 was upgraded to the 330 P4. Its 4-liter 12-cylinder engine produced 450ps, and its extremely light body weight gave it a strong advantage.

Ford Mark IV Racecar

Ferrari 330 P4 Racecar

The Battles of Daytona and the LeMans

The battle on the 1967 Sarthe Circuit revisited

In early February 1967, the first face-off between Ferrari and Ford took place at the Daytona 24-hour race. The development of the Mark IV was not yet complete, and the Ford entering the race was instead the Mark IIB. Though it was a race on Ford's home turf of America, the Mark IIB was plagued with machine trouble. Ferrari went on to dominate the podium that day: two Ferrari 330 P4's took both first and second place, and the 412 P, which was a P3 powered by a P4 engine, took third place.

Then came the LeMans 24-hour race in June; Ford entered four completed Mark IVs' into the race, to go against four 330 P4s'. The Mark IVs' immediately took off to a flying start, and avenged their losses in Daytona. Ferrari attempted to regain ground, but the P4s were not able to turn the tide. The winner was the Mark IV, with Ferrari barely saving face by taking both 2nd and 3rd place.

Unfinished History

Jaguar XJ13 Racecar

The three-way battle including the XJ13 that never came to be; now made possible.

That was how 1967 came to be engraved in the minds of racing fans as the year of fantastic battles between Ford and Ferrari. Yet unknown to many was another machine being secretly developed that could have completely changed the history of these events. That machine was the Jaguar XJ13.

Jaguar had been developing a LeMans car to replace the D type since the beginning of the 60's. The prototype completed in 1966 was powered by Jaguar's first V12 engine ever, a monster that produced 500ps from 5 liters of displacement. The engine was mounted midship on the XJ13, and it was a machine that could have gone face to face with both Ford and Ferrari at the time.

Jaguar had decided to make their triumphant return to LeMans in the following year with this car, and secretly started testing the vehicle. But the XJ13 project was canceled just months before the LeMans. Jaguar was suddenly rocked by talks of a merger, and their racing activities came to a complete halt. The XJ13 never had its chance in the limelight--and with an accident during testing in 1971, it quietly disappeared from the scene.

This Fateful Battle is in Your Hands

In Gran Turismo 5, the Ford Mark IV, Ferrari 330 P4, and the Jaguar XJ13 stand together at last on the same stage. You can be the one to recreate the battle that never came to be.

From the left: Ferrari 330 P4 Racecar, Jaguar XJ13 Racecar, Ford Mark IV Racecar

You determine the outcome of the race that was forbidden by fate.