Officials with the
American Rally Association (ARA) announced today an agreement with Ford
Performance regarding an expanded Contingency Sponsorship Program
for the 2018 ARA National Championship Series. A total of over Forty Thousand
Dollars will be up for grabs to Stage Rally teams competing in Ford vehicles
this year.
The Ford Performance
Contingency Program will be available to all nationally-entered ARA rally teams
competing in the Open 2-Wheel-Drive (O2WD) or Open 4-Wheel-Drive (O4WD)
classes. There will be no restrictions on the Ford vehicle's age or model,
though subsidiary brands, such as Mercury, are not eligible for the program.
The Contingency Program
will require a separate online registration, independent from ARA event
registration. This process must be completed at least one week prior to a
team's first ARA National Rally of the 2018 season and only needs to be done
once for the year.
The Ford Performance
Contingency Program will recognize First, Second, and Third place results in
the O4WD and O2WD National classes for 2018 with available cash awards totaling
$4,500 per event. First place in each class will receive $1,000, while Second
place will receive $750, and Third place $500. The podium rewards total $2,250
per eligible class, per 2018 ARA National Championship Series rally.
Additionally, if a Ford
competitor wins the seven-event 2018 ARA National Championship Series in either
the Open 2WD or Open 4WD classes while driving a properly-registered Ford
vehicle, regardless of year or model, they will be eligible for a $5,000
championship bonus. These two championship bonuses make the total value of the
Ford Performance Contingency Program an impressive $41,500 in 2018.
“We couldn’t be happier
than to announce this expanded partnership between the American Rally
Association and Ford Performance,” said ARA President and National Series Manager
Doug Shepherd, “Ford has a strong history in Stage Rally and we are very
pleased that ARA’s Ford-driving rally teams will enjoy this generous level of
support from Ford Performance during the 2018 ARA National Championship
Series.”
Ford Rally competitors
wishing to register for, or learn more about, the Ford Performance Contingency
Program for the 2018 ARA National Championship Series should visit performanceparts.ford.com/contingency.
Questions or comments regarding the program can be emailed to: Yvonne
Harrison, yharri10@ford.com.