Justice For the Mustang GT3 - WEC-Mandated LMGT3 Silencer Responsible For Proton's Dual Fire At Qatar

You figured that when a racecar catches fire twice within a week and three times total in the span of just a few months, something had to be up, right?

We'll remember that the No. 77 Proton Competition Ford lit up in flames twice in the opening week of the 2025 WEC season just two weeks ago - first in the Prologue towards the end of the opening practice session and then again in the race itself in the 1812km of Qatar after 148 laps completed and Bernardo Sousa behind the wheel.

As the inside of the car began to fill up with smoke, it marked the third time that a Ford has caught fire and burned out on the side of the track in the last couple of months; the sister car No. 88 burst into flames in last season's finale at Bahrain, and the question coming out of the opening round of the 2025 season was - what in the hell is going on with the Mustangs catching on fire while racing in the desert? Or, was there something else going on? Or was it all just a load of bad luck? Well as it turns out - yes there was something else in play, and the new technical regulations regarding noise decibel levels from the FIA and ACO are to blame.

@fiawec FIRE onboard! 🔥 #WEC #Motorsport #Qatar1812km #Proton ♬ original sound - World Endurance Championship

 

Beginning last season and rolling into this season, all LMGT3 cars have been mandated to reduce their decibel output to below 100 dB by way of putting mufflers onto their cars. For the Mustang, the 5.4 L, V8 Coyote engine produces plenty of power and a thunderous roar that's heard from Sea To Shining Sea in North America, but it's balls have been chopped off for WEC competition to be noise-compliant while running on track. Speaking on the Double Stint podcast from SportsCar365.com, John Dagys confirmed that the adjustment Proton had to install on their Mustang was the root cause of the No. 77 catching fire twice in Qatar.

"It's more to do with European tracks during test days. Europe in general is going towards noise reduction..." said Dagys. "One interesting nugget that I randomly came across in the last week of reporting: [the] Ford was a lot quieter than last year - the No. 77 Proton Ford Mustang GT3 had two fires in Qatar, one was in the prologue and the other in the race, and it was actually triggered by the revised exhaust pipe configuration for the car to make it quieter." 

Dagys continued, saying "For those wondering if those fires could ever happen in IMSA or in another series, its unlikely to actually occur, it was specifically related to the modifications that Ford Performance had to make the car quieter to run in the WEC."

Imagine being Proton Competition having to jerry-rig a muffler onto your machine to meet the 'noise-reduction mandate' only for it to catch your million dollar car on fire - twice. I'd be pissed.

We can't get into how LAME it is that the FIA and ACO are hell-bent on reducing the noise that their cars produce - it makes me so enraged that I can't get my thoughts onto paper in a coherent manner. Let's just settle it by saying that IMSA have yet to entertain such a ridiculous concept and will likely never entertain such a terrible idea (that's a huge win for Freedom). 

Its also a huge deal of justice dealt in the favor of Ford and the Dark Horse Mustang in that it's not an engineering or design flaw that's causing it to blow up in the WEC. Instead, its the sallies from the FIA and ACO that are running the show and introducing these lame ass rule change for the LMGT3 class that resulted in the issues.

Enjoy the sound of the Valkyrie while you can because that thing is surely going to get nerfed in no time. Down with the FIA and ACO!

(photo via SportsCar365.com)