Mustang fans around the world can celebrate now that America’s original pony car has wrapped up racing championships on two different continents.
Joe Foster and Scott Maxwell won the Grand-Am KONI Challenge series championship in North America and Eric de Doncker repeated as the GT4 European Cup champion in Europe.
Foster and Maxwell capped a terrific season with a fifth-place finish in the KONI season finale in Alton, VA. During the season, the duo combined for two wins, five top-fives, and eight top-10s on their way to capturing the drivers’ and team championship. They become the second Mustang FR500C drivers to win a KONI championship, with the first coming in 2005.
The race also moved Ford into first place in the manufacturer standings after three Mustangs finished in the top five spots. Mike Canney, Hugh Plumb, and Matt Plumb, drivers of the No. 60 Mustang FR500C, won the race and finished the season tied for sixth in the team standings. Their Rehagen Racing teammates - Dean Martin, Jack Roush Jr., and Ryan Phinny - finished in second place, moving up to fifth place in the standings.
In Europe, Eric de Doncker won his second consecutive GT4 European Cup championship after placing third in the first two races of the weekend and fourth in the final race of the weekend in his No. 1 Mustang FR500GT4. De Doncker tallied four wins on the season and finished on the podium in 14 of 17 events.
"This season has been very good, with tough competition, but we've achieved our goal once more," said de Doncker. "I have to thank my team for all the hard work they did to get us here again. We've had an excellent car that was built to win. I'm happy for the team and for Ford as well."