Ford has announced that it will launch a new variant of the Mustang next year, promising that “the best is absolutely yet to come”.

A preview image released by the company leaves much to the imagination, but suggests it could wear a more rakish rear spoiler than that on the Mustang Dark Horse.

Few details are currently known about the car. Speaking at Ford’s 60th-anniversary press conference for the Mustang, Matt Simpson, the firm’s general manager for enthusiast vehicles, said: “It is going to be another addition to the Mustang stable. We are not stopping with Mustang, we are continuing to grow the family. Mustang has always been about being the most fun to drive car. This is going to be an amazing addition to the family, and we cannot wait to show you more.”

It is possible that the new model is Shelby’s take on the new seventh-generation Mustang, given the famed tuner's first upgraded pony car, the GT350, celebrates its 60th anniversary next year.

Ford has, however, yet to confirm anything about the new model other than its existence.

“From road to racing, [petrol] to electric – we’ve even got a street-legal supercar – the best is absolutely yet to come,” said Simpson.

Ford has radically expanded the remit of the Mustang brand in recent years. The first electric car to wear the hallowed pony badge, the Mach-E, arrived in 2020. It spawned the first off-road-focused Mustang, the Mach-E Rally, last year.

Meanwhile, the seventh-generation V8 muscle car gained a hardcore ‘GTD’ version – Ford’s most powerful road car yet, with more than 800bhp.