
1 030kW electric beast: Super Mustang Mach-E targets new Pikes Peak record
This year marks Ford's third consecutive year of fielding an electric vehicle at Pikes Peak.
The Super Mustang Mach-E produces 3 129kg of downforce at 241km/h.
Romain Dumas takes part in his tenth Pikes Peak and third with Ford Performance.
What do you get if you take a Mustang Mach-E, tune it up with three STARD UHP 6-Phase motors producing over 1 400 horsepower ( 1 043kW) and put veteran racer Romain Dumas behind the wheel? The answer: possibly the fastest car to ever go up Pikes Peak. The Super Mustang Mach-E demonstrator has been purpose-built to tackle the gruelling 19.98km Pikes Peak International Hill Climb on 22 June.
Ford cemented its reputation on 'America's Mountain' with a legacy dating back to 1916 when a Model T first conquered the climb. Since then, constant innovation has driven Ford's presence at Pikes Peak. This year marks Ford's third consecutive year of fielding an electric demonstrator, following the 2023 record-setting SuperVan 4.2 and the 2024 F-150 Lightning SuperTruck claiming the overall win last year.
The lighter, leaner Super Mustang Mach-E could hold an advantage over its contemporaries where nimbleness counts as much as overall power.
'We're continuing to push the boundaries of what's possible with electric vehicles,' said Mark Rushbrook, global director of Ford Performance. 'This Super Mustang Mach-E demonstrator represents the next stage in our electrification journey - lighter, leaner, just as powerful, and more capable in high-altitude competition.
Racing is our test bed; every data point we gather on the mountain helps us build better electric vehicles for our customers - maximizing power delivery, improving regen strategies, or managing heat in extreme elevation changes. What we learn here goes straight into future production.'
The Mustang's mechanical make-up comprises three STARD UHP 6-Phase motors producing over 1 043kW, all fed by 50kWh of ultra-high-performance Li-polymer NMC pouch cells. It runs a voltage of 799V, but this year's setup sheds critical weight - over 117kg - while delivering regenerative braking of 710kW. Handling all 156 turns - up to the 4 302m summit – are a carbon braking system, forged magnesium wheels, and Pirelli P-Zero tyres. And with those infamous steep cliffs eager to punish the slightest mistake, the 3 129kg of downforce at 241km/h will help Dumas safely snake his way up the hill.
Competing in his third outing with Ford, and tenth Pikes Peak overall, will be current record holder Romain Dumas. 'After last year's incredible run with the F-150 Lightning SuperTruck and SuperVan 4.2 before it, I'm honoured to be back with Ford to take on this challenge once again,' said Dumas. 'This Mach-E is a different beast, and we're excited to see what it can do on the mountain.'
click here.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

Associated Press
30 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Wisconsin, NIL collective sue Miami, allege tampering and NIL inducements to land football player
The University of Wisconsin and its NIL collective VC Connect filed a joint lawsuit on Friday against the University of Miami alleging it knowingly induced one of the Badgers' football players to abandon a lucrative name, image and likeness contract to play for the Florida this upcoming season. The 23-page suit, which was filed in state court in Wisconsin and obtained by The Associated Press, could have a a wider impact on future NIL deals across college athletics. The player in question in the filing is referred to only as 'Student-Athlete A.' But the case summary describes facts that line up with the situation involving cornerback Xavier Lucas, who last December announced his plans to enter the transfer portal. Shortly afterward, Darren Heitner, who has been representing Lucas, indicated that Wisconsin was refusing to put Lucas' name in the portal and that it was hindering his ability to talk with other schools. In January, Heitner announced that Lucas would be playing for Miami this fall. The situation is fallout from the rapid changes engulfing college athletics, specifically a combination of two things: Athletes went to court and won the ability to transfer with much more freedom and the 2021 NCAA decision clearing the way for them to strike NIL endorsement deals now worth millions of dollars. That has changed the recruiting landscape and forced the issue of contracts and signed commitments to the fore. 'Indeed, student-athletes' newfound NIL rights will be rendered meaningless if third parties are allowed to induce student-athletes to abandon their contractual commitments,' a portion of the lawsuit reads. Wisconsin said in January that it had credible information that Miami and Lucas made impermissible contact with each other before the former Badgers cornerback decided to transfer. Wisconsin and VC Connect allege that the inducement for Lucas to attend Miami happened within days of him entering his NIL agreement to play for the Badgers, and that they incurred substantial monetary and reputational harm. The lawsuit seeks unspecified monetary damages and 'a declaration that Miami's conduct directed towards Student-Athlete A constituted tampering.' A message left with the University of Miami seeking comment was not immediately returned. In a text message Friday, Heitner declined to comment on the lawsuit but he said that Lucas still plans to attend Miami and play football. Wisconsin said it had the support of its leadership and the Big Ten Conference in filing the lawsuit, noting its commitment to 'ensuring integrity and fundamental fairness in the evolving landscape of college athletics.' 'While we reluctantly bring this case, we stand by our position that respecting and enforcing contractual obligations is essential to maintaining a level playing field,' the statement said. 'In addition to our legal action, we will continue to be proactive to protect the interests of our student-athletes, our program and the broader collegiate athletics community. Lucas, who is from Pompano Beach, Florida, had 12 tackles, an interception and a sack as a freshman for Wisconsin last season. Heitner said that Lucas hasn't received any money from Wisconsin and therefore owes no money to the school. Heitner also argued that Wisconsin had violated an NCAA bylaw by not entering Lucas into the transfer database within two business days of the player's request. Wisconsin issued a statement at the time saying it hadn't put Lucas' name in the portal because he had entered a two-year binding NIL agreement. In April, the surprise transfers of brothers Nico and Madden Iamaleava from Tennessee to UCLA prompted fresh questions about contracts and buyouts. Nico Iamaleava, who led Tennessee to the College Football Playoff last season, walked away from a reported $2.4 million NIL contract. Arkansas freshman quarterback Madden Iamaleava entered the portal after spring practices wrapped up. Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek released a statement indicating he would support efforts by the Razorbacks' NIL collective to enforce buyout clauses in athlete contracts. Iamaleava reportedly had a contract valued at $500,000 upon signing with Arkansas. ___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college football: and
Yahoo
32 minutes ago
- Yahoo
‘WWE LFG': How to Watch Season 2 of the Reality Series Online Without Cable
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes. The WWE's reality competition series WWE LFG (Legends & Future Greats) premieres its second season on Sunday (June 22). More from Billboard Italy's Adriatic Sound Festival Aims to Be the New European Destination for Techno NBA Finals 2025 Livestream: Here's How to Watch Pacers vs. Thunder Game Online for Free Phoenix Mercury vs. Chicago Sky: How to Watch WNBA Stars Kahleah Copper & Angel Reese Face Off With Hulu + Live TV It features 16 contenders battling for a chance to make it to the big leagues of pro wrestling in the WWE. Season two also features five legendary coaches: Undertaker, Booker T, Michelle McCool, Bubba Ray Dudley and Shawn Michaels. Season two of WWE LFG has a start time of 10 p.m. ET/PT. WWE LFG airs on A&E. The series is available to stream on Philo, DirecTV, Fubo and Hulu + Live TV. Keep reading for more details on how cord-cutters can watch the WWE reality series online. A subscription to Philo — which comes with A&E — gets you access to live TV from cable channels for just $28 per month. In fact, you can watch more than 70 cable networks, such as AMC, BBC America, BET, Cartoon Network, CMT, Discovery Channel, Food Network, Hallmark Channel, HGTV, History Channel, IFC, Lifetime, Logo, MotorTrends, Nickelodeon, OWN, Paramount Network, Smithsonian Channel, Sundance TV, TLC, VH1, Vice and many others. In addition, AMC+ is available on Philo. The premium streaming service comes with Philo Core for free, so you can get even more movies and TV shows to watch with signup. watch 'WWE LFG' with Philo A subscription to DirecTV — which comes with A&E for WWE LFG — gets you access to live TV, local and cable channels, starting at $59.99 for the first month of service ($89.99 per month afterwards) for the streamer's signature packages. You can watch local networks such as NBC, ABC, Fox, and PBS, while you can watch many cable networks, including ESPN, FS1, Lifetime, FX, AMC, Bravo, BET, MTV, Paramount Network, Cartoon Network, VH1, Fuse, CNN, Food Network, CNBC and others. watch 'WWE LFG' with DirecTV WWE LFG on A&E is available to watch with Hulu + Live TV. Prices for the cable alternative start at $82.99 per month, while each plan comes with Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN+ at no additional cost. Hulu + Live TV might be best for those who want all of these streaming services together in one bundle. It features many other networks, including ESPN, ABC, Hallmark Channel, BET, CMT, Disney Channel, NBC, Fox Sports and more. watch 'WWE LFG' with Hulu + Live TV To watch season two of WWE LFG on A&E, Fubo starts at $64.99 for the first month, $84.99 per month afterwards (the streamer's current deal) with more than 225 channels — including local and cable — that are streamable on smart TVs, smartphones, tablets and on web browsers. The service even gets you live access to local broadcast networks including NBC, Fox and ABC, while it has dozens of cable networks, such as ESPN, Bravo, CMT, ID, TV Land, VH1, TLC, E!, FS1, MTV, FX, Ion, OWN, Paramount Network and much more. Watch 'WWE LFG' with Fubo Starting at 10 p.m. ET/PT, WWE LFG (Legends & Future Greats) airs on A&E on Sunday (June 22). The series features the opening theme song 'Take A Lesson' by def rebel (music producer Doug Davis), while it's available to stream on Philo. watch 'WWE LFG' with Philo Want more? For more product recommendations, check out our roundups of the best Xbox deals, studio headphones and Nintendo Switch accessories.
Yahoo
32 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Ex-Blackstone Investor Raises $7M for Meridian, Private Equity's New AI Operating System
NEW YORK, June 20, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Meridian, the AI-powered deal management platform for the private markets, today announced its $7 million Series Seed fundraise. The round was led by 645 Ventures with participation from existing investor Chaac Ventures. Meridian also welcomed a group of high-impact angel investors – industry leaders from private equity, credit, and M&A law, many of whom have actively shaped Meridian as early users. Founded by Alexander Sen, a former investor at Blackstone, Thoma Bravo, and CVC, Meridian is building the AI operating system for private market investors. The company combines modern CRM with deep workflow automation and proprietary AI agents to solve the core operational pain points of the world's leading investors – from deal origination to exit. "Private equity still runs on fragmented, manual systems: clunky software, Excel trackers, and scattered third-party data subscriptions," said Alexander Sen, founder and CEO of Meridian. "We're building software that finally reflects how top investment teams source and diligence deals – and we've vertically integrated AI to enable workflows that were never possible before." Meridian brings together a team of over 25 across New York and Miami, with experience spanning enterprise software, AI infrastructure, and capital markets. The company has also hired an experienced customer team who guide firms through the most important technological shift facing private markets today. At the heart of the platform is Scout, Meridian's AI engine. Scout powers intelligent agents that map markets, pinpoint the right companies, automate core evaluation workflows, and surface relationship signals where they matter most. It helps firms spot high-conviction deals before the market does – giving teams a decisive sourcing and diligence edge. Meridian has to date focused on the top of the market, helping some of the world's largest private equity and credit firms run better, more intelligent deal sourcing and evaluation processes. The platform is quickly gaining share at top 100 firms and is now expanding into LPs, investment banks, and global hedge funds – reflecting a broader shift toward modern infrastructure across every layer of private company investing. "There's a generational shift happening in private markets – more complexity, more competition, and more data," said Nnamdi Okike, Managing Partner at 645 Ventures. "AI is a game changer for private market deal sourcing, due diligence and deal management. Firms that do not leverage AI in this new market will be left behind. We were particularly drawn to Alex's insights into how AI will transform private markets, which were developed through his experience in private equity. Meridian is arming investors with the system they'll need to win." The funding will be used to expand Meridian's AI capabilities, accelerate product development, and scale go-to-market efforts globally. "Private market firms are under pressure to move faster, operate leaner, and make sharper decisions," said Sen. "Software is no longer just overhead at private equity firms – it's become a source of edge. The best investors are treating technology and data as central to how they generate outsized returns." To request a demo or learn more, visit About Meridian Meridian is the AI-native operating system for institutional private markets. The platform combines next-generation deal software, massive datasets, and intelligent agents into a single system that helps investors originate, evaluate, and execute with greater speed and precision. Founded by Alexander Sen, a former investor at Blackstone, Thoma Bravo, and CVC, Meridian serves private equity, credit, and broader financial services firms engaged in M&A. The company is headquartered in New York and Miami, with a team of product builders, engineers, and customer leaders with deep experience across enterprise software and private markets. Learn more at About 645 Ventures 645 Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm that partners with exceptional founders building iconic companies. The firm invests at the Seed and Series A stages and supports founders through its proprietary software platform Voyager and deep Connected Network. 645 Ventures manages over $550M in AUM across five funds. Learn more at View source version on Contacts Media Contact Kelsey Cullen, KCPR650.438.1063kelsey@ Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data