Hoy to Drive Multimatic Mustang GT4 With Johnson, Priaulx

Track cycling legend Sir Chris Hoy will drive a Multimatic-entered Ford Mustang GT4 in two rounds of the British GT Championship later this year.

The six-time Olympic gold medallist and 11-time world champion will be partnered with Multimatic driver Billy Johnson at Donington next month and FIA World Endurance Championship racer Andy Priaulx at Spa in July.

It will mark Hoy’s return to British GT five years after his full season with the RJN Nissan GT Academy team, and a return to Spa where he clinched his first motorsport podium.

The 43-year-old Scot switched to four wheels after his retirement from cycling competition in 2013 and went on to win the 2015 European Le Mans Series LMP3 title which led to his 24 Hours of Le Mans debut the following year.

“This is a fantastic opportunity to race the Ford Mustang GT4,” said Hoy, who most recently sampled a Gen 2 Formula E car in Rome.

“The car already has a great racing pedigree in North America so I’m excited to see what that American muscle can do at Donington and Spa.

“Multimatic is one of the automotive industry’s best kept secrets as they work on so many extremely cool but extremely secret programs.

“I’ve seen the success they made of the Ford GT program so I’m excited to get behind the wheel of one of their cars.”

Multimatic CEO Larry Holt expects Hoy to be a “great fit” into the team’s Mustang lineup.

Hoy’s Spa co-driver Priaulx is set to make his British GT debut, as well as his first appearance in GT4 machinery in a decade, at the Belgian circuit.

It means the 44-year-old, who took pole for the recent Spa WEC round, will be competing against his son Sebastian Priaulx – who drives the sister Multimatic Mustang GT4 – for the first time.

“I know that he [Hoy] will really enjoy the car and I’m obviously aware that he’s a pretty good peddler, so with the two guys we are partnering him with a good result is definitely on the cards,” said Holt.

“At Spa we are creating a special challenge for his No. 19 car, in that our GT WEC star Andy Priaulx will be his partner creating a father-son intra-team rivalry.

“I’m sure Andy will be pushing Chris hard to beat Seb and Scott for family reasons. At Donington, Chris will be driving with Billy Johnson, another of our WEC stars and a Mustang specialist, which should also result in a top finish.”

The No. 19 Multimatic Ford GT4 that Hoy will pilot has been driven by different pairings in the first two rounds of the 2019 season.

Silver Cup pairing Jade Buford and Chad McCumbee shared the car in the Oulton Park season-opener, while Ben Devlin and Alistair MacKinnon ran as a Pro-Am duo at Snetterton last weekend.