The No. 65 Ford Racing Mustang GT3 Evo won GTD PRO at Laguna Seca with Frédéric Vervisch and Christopher Mies. Photo Credit: Ford Performance.
Laguna Seca delivered the win Ford needed. The No. 65 Ford Racing Mustang GT3 Evo of Frédéric Vervisch and Christopher Mies took GTD PRO at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, beating the No. 4 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R of Tommy Milner and Nicky Catsburg by 1.2 seconds.
That margin tells only part of the story. Mies qualified third in class. The race turned on pit timing and fuel strategy, with Ford and Multimatic using a leapfrog stop sequence to jump the Corvette at the right moment. For Vervisch and Mies, it was their first win since the 2025 Rolex 24 at Daytona. And at Laguna Seca, that strategy-first win echoed a familiar Ford script. In 2016, the Ford GT scored its first global win at the same track when Ryan Briscoe and Richard Westbrook pulled it off on fuel mileage.
How Ford Won Laguna Seca on Pit Timing
The result was built in the pits as much as on track. Mies started from P3 in GTD PRO. Ford did not have a front-row launch to protect. It had to make the race come to it.
Race results, how-to guides, and the stories worth knowing - straight to your inbox.
The key move was the leapfrog. The No. 65 crew used pit timing to cycle the Mustang ahead of the No. 4 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Z06 GT3.R. Once Vervisch took over, the job shifted from attack mode to execution. Hit the fuel number. Keep the gap. Survive traffic.
Vervisch brought it home 1.2 seconds ahead of Milner and Catsburg. Close. Controlled. Exactly the kind of Laguna Seca win that fits Ford history.
That is why the 2016 comparison matters. Back then, the Ford GT earned its first global victory at Laguna Seca with Ryan Briscoe and Richard Westbrook through fuel-mileage strategy. Different car. Same track. Same kind of pressure. Same reward for getting the call right.
The updated aero package on the Mustang GT3 EVO includes revised dive planes and splitters. Photo Credit: Multimatic.
Why the Mustang GT3 Evo Fits Laguna Seca
This win also matters because it came with the Evo package in play. The car is not just the original Mustang GT3 with setup tweaks. The Evo carries real hardware changes from Ford Performance and Multimatic.
Start with aero. The revised package includes double dive planes up front, plus a revised splitter and revised diffuser. That is the visible part.
Underneath, the kinematics changed too. Ford and Multimatic revised anti-dive and camber gain to improve platform control and tire behavior over a stint. The car also moved to a new Brembo brake package. Better consistency. Better confidence under repeated heavy stops.
That matters at Laguna Seca. This place punishes brake stability, front-end support, and mid-corner balance. The hardware is there, and this result is the clearest sign yet that the Evo package is doing what it was built to do.
Laguna Seca Podium and the Points Picture
Ford got the win, but the rest of GTD PRO stayed tight. The No. 4 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Z06 GT3.R of Tommy Milner and Nicky Catsburg finished second, just 1.2 seconds behind the Mustang. Third went to AO Racing’s No. 77 Porsche 911 GT3 R with Nick Tandy and Laurin Heinrich King, and that podium fight stayed tense to the line. The No. 77 beat the No. 3 Corvette of Antonio Garcia and Alexander Sims by only 0.4 second.
In the championship, Catsburg and Milner still lead GTD PRO on the unofficial standings. Vervisch and Mies remain in the hunt, but they are still 74 points back after Laguna Seca. The win helps. It does not erase the gap.
That makes the next few rounds important. One strategic win changes momentum. It does not hand over the points lead.
Ford History at Laguna Seca Runs Deep
Laguna Seca has been good to Ford before. Long before the GT3 era, Parnelli Jones put a Bud Moore Boss 302 in victory lane here in 1970 after charging from the back. Different generation. Different rules. Same kind of track position problem. Same Ford payoff at the end.
That is part of what makes this GTD PRO win land harder than a normal race recap. It connects the current Mustang program to real Laguna Seca history, not just a one-weekend result.
Next Stop: Detroit
Laguna Seca gave the Mustang GT3 Evo its biggest statement of the season so far. Not with runaway pace. With track position, fuel math, and a car that finally converted the pieces into a win.
Next up is the Detroit Sports Car Classic, set for May 29-30. Tight walls. Different rhythm. Another chance to see if the No. 65 Ford Racing Mustang GT3 Evo can turn one smart win into a real run.
