Garen Nicoghosian, the Ford design manager in charge of the NASCAR project, said:

We had an opportunity to add more personality and detail to the race car. We took advantage of this opportunity and sculpted a more aggressive front end and we added grille bars that are identical in design to the production car. We also added more detail to the fog light housings, and created a more detailed headlight area as well. In addition, we also sculpted a more aggressive hood, and were able to achieve a closer look to the production car. Our race car is even closer in design to the production car now, and we are very pleased with the results.

Ford unveiled its 2013 Sprint Cup Fusion in January. Since then, Dodge and Toyota have each unveiled their designs. Chevy, which is switching from the Impala to the SS — a completely new model (thought it will be based off of the Holden Commodore/Pontiac G8 according to rumors), has yet to unveil their entry.

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According to AutoWeek.com, Ford designers took center stage in the development of this model.

In previous years, race teams built and designed Cup cars. For example, Penske Racing and Roush Fenway Racing designed the Ford Taurus that debuted in the series in 1998. This time around, NASCAR worked with the automakers’ designers to give the cars more brand identity.

Andy Slankard, of Ford Racing, said:

This time, we have had the luxury of support from the Ford Design Center to give us these sleek shapes and new look. Only designers could do that, not a bunch of engineers or race-car guys.

Garen Nicoghosian, who is heading up the Design Center portion of the Cup Fusion redesign, said:

There is a size difference between the production [car] and the race car, and the proportions are so different. The street Fusion is a front-wheel-drive, front-engine car and [the] race car is a front-engine, rear-wheel-drive car with a really long hood and a much lower and wider stance. The fundamentally different profiles and proportions of the two vehicles, as well as other constraints, presented a bigger challenge than simply taking a Fusion and putting NASCAR stickers on it. … We paid close attention to the way we shaped the details on the racer, such as the headlight, grille and fog-light openings, as well as the body-side sections, character lines and overall surface language. When parked side by side, the racer and the street car “feel” the same, even though the two share no common surfaces.

Slankard added:

I think this is a nice, sporty version of the Fusion, and a lot of people will be excited about it.

The agreement keeps both sets of co-owners in tact.

Max Jones, co-owner and GM of Yates, said:

This partnership with Hall of Fame is a great stepping stone for the Yates organization. Through this partnership, we are able to continue the expansion of our shop and field another Sprint Cup entry.  We, along with Ford Racing, welcome Hall of Fame Racing and look forward to a very successful season.

Tom Garfinkel, co-owner of HOF Racing, said:

Jeff Moorad and I knew it would take time to construct the right model to improve our competitive position in the sport and we think we’ve come a long way to achieving that through our association with Yates Racing. We’re proud to be associated with Doug [Yates] and Max and Ford Racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

The alliance between the two teams means that HOF will change from Toyota to Ford. Thus far, no driver has been named.

The move reunited McMurray and Wingo, as Wingo served as McMurray’s crew chief at Chip Ganassi Racing for three seasons before McMurray left to join RFR.

Wingo said:

Jamie and I had some good runs together at Ganassi and we were pretty successful on the track. I’ve seen how well Jamie has performed in the past and I hope with coming over to Roush Fenway Racing we can build on that success. Not only do I get to work with Jamie, but I get to work with four other really good crew chiefs here at Roush Fenway Racing. With the support of them and everyone at Ford Racing, I’m really looking forward to next season.