131-727: McLaren Racing Limited ( / m ə ˈ k l ær ə n / mə- KLARR -ən ) is a British motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking , Surrey, England. The team is a subsidiary of the McLaren Group , which owns a majority of the team. McLaren is best known as a Formula One chassis constructor , the second-oldest active team and the second-most successful Formula One team after Ferrari , having won 188 races, 12 Drivers' Championships , and eight Constructors' Championships . McLaren also has
262-406: A transformative shift, echoing past pivots. The industry, much like the cars it champions , has had to navigate through a global pandemic and a persistent chip shortage, each threatening to derail production schedules . At the same time, a new course is being charted towards an electric future, a dramatic change in direction that is challenging the old guard of gasoline engines. There is also
393-631: A "manufacturer's" logo and "vehicle name", yet use components produced by another automobile manufacturer. There are also other stock car governing bodies, most notably the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA). In the UK, British Stock car racing is also referred to as "Short Circuit Racing". UK Stock car racing started in the 1950s and grew rapidly through the 1960s and 1970s. Events take place on shale or tarmac tracks – usually around 1/4 mile long. There are around 35 tracks in
524-490: A "proper disaster" for the team's credibility. 2018 was the first season in McLaren's history when their cars were powered by Renault engines. McLaren also announced that Fernando Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne would remain with the team for the 2018 season . On 6 November 2017, the team announced that Lando Norris would be the team's test and reserve driver. At the season-opening Australian Grand Prix , Fernando Alonso scored
655-578: A British racing licence , was based in Feltham , England from 1963 to 1964, and in Colnbrook , England from 1965 until 1981, and it has been based in Woking , England since 1981. Despite this, Bruce never used the traditional British racing green on his cars. Instead, he used colour schemes that were not based on national principles (e.g. his first Formula One car , the McLaren M2B car, raced at
786-514: A McLaren shareholder. In the meantime, they continued with Cosworth engines as old rival Lauda came out of retirement in 1982 to drive alongside Watson in that year's 1B development of the MP4. They each won two races, Watson notably from 17th place on the grid in Detroit , and at one stage of the season McLaren were second in the constructors' championship. As part of a dispute with FISA , they boycotted
917-734: A growing number of events for electric racing cars, such as the Formula E , the Eco Grand Prix or the Electric GT Championship . In single-seater ( open-wheel ) racing, the wheels are not covered, and the cars often have aerofoil wings front and rear to produce downforce and enhance adhesion to the track. The most popular varieties of open-wheel road racing are Formula One (F1), the IndyCar Series and Super Formula . In Europe and Asia, open-wheeled racing
1048-683: A history in American open wheel racing as both an entrant and a chassis constructor, and has won the Canadian-American Challenge Cup (Can-Am) sports car racing championship. McLaren is one of only three constructors, and the only team, to complete the Triple Crown of Motorsport (wins at the Indianapolis 500 , 24 Hours of Le Mans , and Monaco Grand Prix ). Founded in 1963 by New Zealander Bruce McLaren ,
1179-647: A lap at 388 km/h (241 mph). The series' biggest race is the Indianapolis 500 , which is commonly referred to as "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing" due to being the longest continuously run race in the series and having the largest crowd for a single-day sporting event (350,000+). The other major international single-seater racing series is Formula 2 (formerly known as Formula 3000 and GP2 Series ). Regional series include Super Formula and Formula V6 Asia (specifically in Asia), Formula Renault 3.5 (also known as
1310-799: A major upturn in form proceeded. Bruce won the Race of Champions at the Brands Hatch circuit and Hulme won the International Trophy at Silverstone , both non-championship races, before Bruce took the team's first championship win at the Belgian Grand Prix . Hulme also won the Italian and Canadian Grands Prix later in the year, helping the team to second in the Constructors' Championship. Using an updated 'C' version on
1441-708: A more regular basis. However, the season started with a massive crash at the Australian Grand Prix in which Fernando Alonso sustained rib fractures and a collapsed lung after colliding with Esteban Gutiérrez and somersaulting into the crash barriers. Alonso, as a result of his injuries, was forced to miss the second round of the Championship, the Bahrain Grand Prix , and was replaced by reserve driver Stoffel Vandoorne . Vandoorne produced an impressive performance in his first race to score
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#17327826371321572-482: A much easier time following and passing than in open-wheel racing . It often features full-contact racing with subtle bumping and nudging due to the small speed differentials and large grids. The major touring car championships conducted worldwide are the Supercars Championship (Australia), British Touring Car Championship , Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM), World Touring Car Championship and
1703-525: A point, the narrowest margin ever. The McLaren-TAGs were again strong in 1985 ; a third Constructors' Championship came their way while this time Prost won the Drivers' Championship. In 1986 , the Williams team were resurgent with their Honda engine and drivers Nigel Mansell and Nelson Piquet , while at McLaren, Lauda's replacement, 1982 champion Keke Rosberg could not gel with the car. Williams took
1834-528: A prescribed route occurred at 4:30 A.M. on August 30, 1867, between Ashton-under-Lyne and Old Trafford , England, a distance of 8 mi (13 km). It was won by the carriage of Isaac Watt Boulton . Internal combustion auto racing events began soon after the construction of the first successful gasoline -fueled automobiles. The first organized contest was on April 28, 1887, by the chief editor of Paris publication Le Vélocipède , Monsieur Fossier. It ran 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) from Neuilly Bridge to
1965-581: A season of significant progress compared to 2015, Alonso and Button finished the championship in 10th and 15th places respectively with the team ending the season in sixth place in the Constructors' Championship with 76 points. On 3 September 2016, Jenson Button announced he would take a sabbatical from Formula One for the 2017 season. He then confirmed on 25 November that he would retire from F1 altogether with Vandoorne being Alonso's new Teammate for 2017. In February 2017, McLaren signed Lando Norris to their Young Driver Programme. Alonso did not take part in
2096-515: A season-long battle, winning 15 of the 16 races (at the other race at Monza , Senna had been leading comfortably, but collided with back-marker Jean-Louis Schlesser ). At the Portuguese Grand Prix , their relationship soured when Senna squeezed Prost against the pit wall; Prost won, but afterwards said, "It was dangerous. If he wants the world championship that badly he can have it." Prost scored more points that year, but because only
2227-483: A season. The year 2003 started promisingly, with one win each for Coulthard and Räikkönen at the first two Grands Prix. However, they were hampered when the MP4-18 car designed for that year suffered crash test and reliability problems, forcing them to continue using a 'D' development of the year-old MP4-17 for longer than they had initially planned. Despite this, Räikkönen scored points consistently and challenged for
2358-459: A second-place each for Hulme and Bruce in the first two Grands Prix, but in June, Bruce was killed in a crash at Goodwood while testing the new M8D Can-Am car. After his death, Teddy Mayer took over effective control of the team; Hulme continued with Dan Gurney and Peter Gethin partnering him. Gurney won the first two Can-Am events at Mosport and St. Jovite and placed ninth in the third, but left
2489-555: A senior and leading role in the winning of more than 100 Formula One Grands Prix and multiple Formula One World Championships, and was at the centre of the development of several Formula One World Champions, including Lewis Hamilton . Whitmarsh was also chairman of the Formula One Teams Association for three years (2010–2012). Whitmarsh joined McLaren Racing in 1989 as an operations director, having come from British Aerospace (BAE). In 1997, Whitmarsh
2620-426: A small, low-cost machine on small tracks. Many of the current top drivers began their careers in karts. Formula Ford represents the most popular first open-wheel category for up-and-coming drivers stepping up from karts. The series is still the preferred option, as it has introduced an aero package and slicks, allowing the junior drivers to gain experience in a race car with dynamics closer to F1. The Star Mazda Series
2751-701: A three-race suspended ban for misleading stewards at the Australian and Malaysian Grands Prix. Despite these early problems, a late revival had Hamilton win at the Hungarian and Singapore Grands Prix. For the 2010 season , McLaren lost its status as the Mercedes works team; Mercedes decided to buy the Brackley-based Brawn team that had won the 2009 titles with its customer engines, Whitmarsh having chosen to abandon their exclusive rights to
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#17327826371322882-823: Is NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing). NASCAR's premier series is the NASCAR Cup Series , its most famous races being the Daytona 500 , the Southern 500 , the Coca-Cola 600 , and the Brickyard 400 . NASCAR also runs several feeder series, including the Xfinity Series and Craftsman Truck Series (a pickup truck racing series). The series conduct races across the entire continental United States . NASCAR also sanctions series outside of
3013-715: Is a British businessman and Group CEO of the Aston Martin Performance Technologies ;team since 21 September 2021. Whitmarsh is best known to motorsport insiders, media, and fans for his long and successful period at McLaren , for which he worked for 25 years (1989–2014) in various senior positions, including group chief executive officer, as well as Formula One Team Principal for six years (2008–2014). Under his leadership, McLaren diversified its business activities beyond its core activity of Formula One , launching McLaren Automotive and McLaren Applied Technologies . Whitmarsh played
3144-719: Is a worldwide series that runs only street circuit and race tracks . These cars are heavily based on technology and their aerodynamics. The speed record was set in 2005 by Juan Pablo Montoya hitting 373 km/h (232 mph). Some of the most prominent races are the Monaco Grand Prix, the Italian Grand Prix , and the British Grand Prix . The season ends with the crowning of the World Championship for drivers and constructors. In
3275-650: Is another entry-level series. Indy Lights represent the last step on the Road to Indy , being less powerful and lighter than an IndyCar racer. Students at colleges and universities can also take part in single-seater racing through the Formula SAE competition, which involves designing and building a single-seater car in a multidisciplinary team and racing it at the competition. This also develops other soft skills, such as teamwork, while promoting motorsport and engineering. The world's first all-female Formula racing team
3406-615: Is commonly referred to as 'Formula', with appropriate hierarchical suffixes. In North America, the 'Formula' terminology is not followed (with the exception of F1). The sport is usually arranged to follow an international format (such as F1), a regional format (such as the Formula 3 Euro Series), and/or a domestic, or country-specific, format (such as the German Formula 3 championship, or the British Formula Ford). F1
3537-923: Is the FIA World Endurance Championship . The main series for GT car racing is the GT World Challenge Europe , divided into two separate championships: the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup and the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup . This series has formed after the folding of the various FIA GT championships. The prevailing classes of GT cars are GT3 , GT4 and GT2 class cars. GT2 cars have powerful engines, often exceeding 600 horsepower. However, they have less downforce than GT3 cars and also have less driver aids. GT3 cars are far and away
3668-522: Is undergoing a period of transition, but is still the longest-running road racing series in the U.S. The National Auto Sport Association also provides a venue for amateurs to compete in home-built factory-derived vehicles on various local circuits. In sports car racing, production-derived versions of two-seat sports cars , also known as grand tourers (GTs), and purpose-built sports prototype cars compete within their respective classes on closed circuits. The premier championship series of sports car racing
3799-455: Is using Mercedes-Benz engines from the 2021 season until at least 2030. After initially returning to the Indianapolis 500 in 2017 as a backer of Andretti Autosport to run Fernando Alonso and then in 2019 as an independent entry, McLaren announced in August 2019 that they would run in conjunction with Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports starting in 2020 to run the full IndyCar Series ,
3930-688: The 1964 series , but Mayer was killed in practice for the final race at the Longford Circuit in Tasmania . When Bruce McLaren approached Teddy Mayer to help him with the purchase of the Zerex sports car from Roger Penske, Teddy Mayer and Bruce McLaren began discussing a business partnership resulting in Teddy Mayer buying in to Bruce McLaren Motor Racing Limited (BMMR) and ultimately becoming its largest shareholder. The team, competing under
4061-685: The 1966 Monaco Grand Prix , was painted white with a green stripe, to represent a fictional Yamura team in John Frankenheimer 's film Grand Prix ). During this period, Bruce drove for his team in sports car races in the United Kingdom and North America and also entered the 1965 Tasman Series with Phil Hill , but did not win it. He continued to drive in Grands Prix for Cooper, but judging that team's form to be waning, decided to race his own cars in 1966. Bruce McLaren made
McLaren - Misplaced Pages Continue
4192-507: The 1993 season. Senna—who initially agreed only to a race-by-race contract before later signing for the whole year—won five races, including a record-breaking sixth victory at Monaco and a win at the European Grand Prix , where he went from fifth to first on the opening lap. His teammate, 1991 CART champion Michael Andretti , fared much worse; he scored only seven points, and was replaced by test driver Mika Häkkinen for
4323-477: The 1995 season, the MP4/10 , was not a front-runner and Brundle's replacement, former champion Nigel Mansell , was unable to fit into the car at first and departed after just two races, with Mark Blundell taking his place. While Williams dominated in 1996 , McLaren, now with David Coulthard alongside Häkkinen, went a third successive season without a win. In 1997 , however, Coulthard broke this run by winning
4454-528: The 2017 Monaco Grand Prix as he was participating in the Indianapolis 500 . Instead Jenson Button returned for the one race as his replacement. McLaren finished 2017 9th with 30 points in total. McLaren announced during the 2017 Singapore Grand Prix weekend that they would split from engine supplier Honda at the end of the 2017 season and had agreed on a three-year customer deal to be supplied with Mecachrome -assembled Renault engines. Team boss Éric Boullier described their performance between 2015 and 2017 as
4585-586: The 2020 season. The season was significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The season was shortened to 18 races, with the season opener to take place in Austria . At the Austrian Grand Prix , Norris achieved his first ever podium, finishing in third. Sainz achieved the team's second podium in 2020 at the Italian Grand Prix , where he finished second. The team finished the 2020 season third in
4716-733: The 24 Hours of Le Mans , begun in 1923. It is run by the Automobile Club of the West (ACO). Team Ferrari won the race in 2023. With auto construction and racing dominated by France, the French automobile club ACF staged a number of major international races, usually from or to Paris, connecting with another major city, in France or elsewhere in Europe. Aspendale Racecourse , in Australia,
4847-634: The 24 Hours of Le Mans , the Rolex 24 at Daytona , 24 Hours of Spa -Franchorchamps, the 12 Hours of Sebring , the 6 Hours of Watkins Glen , and the 1,000-mile (1,600 km) Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta . There is also the 24 Hours of the Nürburgring on the famed Nordschleife track and the Dubai 24 Hour , which is aimed at GT3 and below cars with a mixture of professional and pro-am drivers. Production-car racing, otherwise known as "showroom stock" in
4978-638: The Benetton team), Ferrari pushed the British team more closely in 1990 . McLaren, in turn, brought in Ferrari's Gerhard Berger , but like the two seasons before, the Drivers' Championship was led by Prost and Senna and settled at the penultimate race in Japan . Here, Senna collided with Prost at the first corner, forcing both to retire, but this time Senna escaped punishment and took the title; McLaren also won
5109-839: The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in February, Alonso suffered a concussion and, as a result, Kevin Magnussen replaced him for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix in March. At that inaugural race of the season, Jenson Button finished 11th, but was lapped twice and finished last of the finishing cars. Following considerable unreliability and initial suggestions that the Honda engine was underpowered relative to its competitors, steady performance gains eventually resulted in Button managing to score
5240-588: The Italian Grand Prix , John Watson was signed, instead. No improvement occurred in 1979 ; Coppuck's M28 design was described by Mayer as "ghastly, a disaster" and "quite diabolical" and the M29 did little to change the situation. Tambay scored no points and Watson only 15 to place the team eighth at the end of the year. The 1980s started much as the 1970s had ended: Alain Prost took over from Tambay but Watson and he rarely scored points. Under increasing pressure since
5371-521: The Luxembourg and Japanese Grands Prix gave both him the Drivers' Championship and McLaren the Constructors' Championship. Häkkinen won his second Drivers' Championship the following season , but due to a combination of driver errors and mechanical failures, the team lost the constructors' title to Ferrari. In 2000 McLaren won seven races in a close fight with Ferrari, but ultimately Ferrari and Schumacher prevailed in both competitions. This marked
McLaren - Misplaced Pages Continue
5502-614: The MP4-29 , which was revealed on 24 January 2014. They had a largely unsuccessful 2014; their best result was in Australia where – after Daniel Ricciardo 's disqualification from second place – Magnussen finished second and Button third. Button subsequently finished fourth in Canada , Britain , and Russia . Their highest grid position was in Britain with Button's third place on
5633-505: The MP4/9 was driven by Häkkinen and Martin Brundle , despite achieving eight podiums over the season no wins were achieved. Peugeot was dropped after a single year due to multiple engine failures/unreliability which cost McLaren potential race victories and they switched to a Mercedes-Benz -branded, Ilmor -designed engine. For 1995 season onwards, McLaren ended their engine deal with Peugeot Sport and started an engine full-works partnership with Mercedes-Benz High Performance Engines for
5764-442: The Russian Grand Prix . At the following United States Grand Prix , Button scored his best result of the season with sixth place. The team finished ninth in the constructors' standings with 27 points, McLaren's worst performance since 1980. McLaren retained the Alonso - Button pairing for the 2016 season. The second year of the Honda partnership was better than the first, with the team being able to challenge for top 10 positions on
5895-453: The San Marino Grand Prix . Although 1983 was not so fruitful, Watson did win again in the United States, this time from 22nd on the grid at Long Beach . Having been fired by Renault, Prost returned to McLaren once again for 1984 . Now using the TAG engines, the team dominated, scoring 12 wins and 2 + 1 ⁄ 2 times as many constructors' points as nearest rival Ferrari. In the Drivers' Championship, Lauda prevailed over Prost by half
6026-463: The WeatherTech SportsCar Championship starting in 2014. These races are often conducted over long distances, at least 1,000 km (621 mi), and cars are driven by teams of two or more drivers, switching every few hours. Due to the performance difference between production-based sports cars and purpose-built sports prototypes, one race usually involves several racing classes, each fighting for its own championship. Famous sports car races include
6157-518: The World Touring Car Cup . The European Touring Car Cup is a one-day event open to Super 2000 specification touring cars from Europe's many national championships. While Super GT traces its lineage to the now-defunct JGTC , the cars are much more similar to GT3 race cars than proper touring cars, and also have much more aggressive aerodynamics. The Sports Car Club of America 's SPEED World Challenge Touring Car and GT championships are dominant in North America. America's historic Trans-Am Series
6288-409: The 1980s and 1990s all over the United States. In North America, stock car racing is the most popular form of auto racing. Primarily raced on oval tracks , stock cars vaguely resemble production cars, but are in fact purpose-built racing machines that are built to tight specifications and, together with touring cars, also called Silhouette racing cars . The largest stock car racing governing body
6419-462: The 24 hours of Le Mans (held annually since 1923) and in the (European) Le Mans series , Asian Le Mans Series and the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship . These cars are referred to as LMP (Le Mans prototype) cars with LMH and LMDh cars being run mainly by manufacturers and the slightly less powerful LMP2 cars run by privateer teams. All three Le Mans Series run GT cars in addition to Le Mans Prototypes; these cars have different restrictions than
6550-410: The Bois de Boulogne. On July 22, 1894, the Parisian magazine Le Petit Journal organized what is considered to be the world's first motoring competition, from Paris to Rouen. One hundred and two competitors paid a 10- franc entrance fee. The first American automobile race is generally considered to be the Thanksgiving Day Chicago Times-Herald race of November 28, 1895. Press coverage of
6681-526: The British Formula One team Cooper with whom he had won three Grands Prix and come second in the 1960 World Championship. Wanting to compete in the Australasian Tasman Series , Bruce approached his employers, but when team owner Charles Cooper insisted on using 1.5-litre Formula One-specification engines instead of the 2.5-litre motors permitted by the Tasman rules, Bruce decided to set up his own team to run him and his prospective Formula One teammate Timmy Mayer with custom-built Cooper cars. Bruce won
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#17327826371326812-596: The Constructors' Championship, but for Prost, wins in San Marino , Monaco , and Austria combined with the fact that the Williams drivers were taking points from each other meant that he retained a chance going into the last race, the Australian Grand Prix . There, a puncture for Mansell and a precautionary pit stop for Piquet gave Prost the race win and his second title, making him the first driver to win back-to-back championships since Jack Brabham in 1959 and 1960. In 1987 Barnard departed for Ferrari to be replaced by Steve Nichols (who himself joined Ferrari in 1989). In
6943-404: The Constructors' Championship, their worst ranking since 1983. Coulthard left for Red Bull Racing in 2005 to be replaced by former CART champion Juan Pablo Montoya for what was McLaren's most successful season in several years as he and Räikkönen won ten races. However, both the team not being able to work out why the car could not heat its tyres properly in the early stages of the season and
7074-524: The Constructors' Championship. The 1991 year was another for McLaren and Senna, with the ascendant Renault-powered Williams team their closest challengers. By 1992 , Williams, with their advanced FW14B car, had overtaken McLaren, breaking their four-year run as champions, despite the latter winning five races that year. As Honda withdrew from the sport at end of 1992, McLaren sought a new engine supplier. A deal to secure Renault engines fell through, subsequently McLaren switched to customer Ford engines for
7205-458: The Drivers' Championship by finishing third. McLaren, though, lost the Constructors' Championship to Ferrari. In 1977 , the M23 was gradually replaced with the M26 , the M23's final works outing being Gilles Villeneuve 's Formula One debut with the team in a one-off appearance at the British Grand Prix . Hunt won on three occasions that year, but the Lauda and Ferrari combination proved too strong, Hunt and McLaren managing just fifth and third in
7336-514: The Drivers' Championship for much of the year, but tensions arose within the team, BBC Sport claimed that Alonso was unable to cope with Hamilton's competitiveness. At the Hungarian Grand Prix , Alonso was judged to have deliberately impeded his teammate during qualifying, so the team were not allowed to score Constructors' points at the event. An internal agreement within the McLaren team stated that drivers would alternatively have an extra lap for qualifying, however, Lewis Hamilton refused to accept for
7467-482: The Drivers' Championship heading into the final race in Brazil , Räikkönen in the Ferrari won the race and the Drivers' Championship, a single point ahead of both McLaren drivers. In November, Alonso and McLaren agreed to terminate their contract by mutual consent, Heikki Kovalainen filling the vacant seat alongside Hamilton. In 2008 , a close fight ensued between Hamilton and the Ferraris of Felipe Massa and Räikkönen; Hamilton won five times and despite also crossing
7598-555: The Drivers' Championship in 1974 and 1976 respectively. The year 1974 also marked the start of a long-standing sponsorship by the Marlboro cigarette brand. In 1981, McLaren merged with Ron Dennis ' Project Four Racing ; Dennis took over as team principal, and shortly afterwards organised a buyout of the original McLaren shareholders to take full control of the team. This began the team's most successful era; with Porsche and Honda engines, Niki Lauda , Alain Prost , and Ayrton Senna won seven Drivers' Championships between them and
7729-411: The Drivers' Championship. It was a close fight for Fittipaldi, who secured the title with a fourth at the season-ending United States Grand Prix , putting him three points ahead of Ferrari's Clay Regazzoni . With Hulme and multiple motorcycle world champion Mike Hailwood , he also sealed McLaren's first Constructors' Championship. The year 1975 was less successful for the team: Fittipaldi was second in
7860-409: The FIA GT cars. Another prototype and GT racing championship exists in the United States; the Grand-Am , which began in 2000, sanctions its own endurance series, the Rolex Sports Car Series , which consists of slower and lower-cost Daytona Prototype race cars compared to LMP and FIA GT cars. The Rolex Sports Car Series and American Le Mans Series announced a merger between the two series forming
7991-528: The Hungarian Grand Prix. Subsequently, the McLaren team was investigated by the FIA for having proprietary technical blueprints of Ferrari's car – the so-called "Spygate" controversy . At the first hearing, McLaren management consistently denied all knowledge, blaming a single "rogue engineer". However, in the final hearing, McLaren was found guilty and the team was excluded from the Constructors' Championship and fined $ 100 million. The drivers were allowed to continue without penalty, and while Hamilton led
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#17327826371328122-484: The M7, a further three podium finishes followed for Bruce in 1969 , but the team's fifth win had to wait until the last race of the 1969 championship when Hulme won the Mexican Grand Prix . That year, McLaren experimented with four-wheel drive in the M9A , but the car had only a single outing driven by Derek Bell at the British Grand Prix ; Bruce described driving it as like "trying to write your signature with somebody jogging your elbow". The year 1970 started with
8253-451: The McLaren cars managed only eighth place (Hamilton) and 10th place (Button), while the drivers' and Constructors' Championships were being dominated by Red Bull Racing and Ferrari, whose cars occupied the first four places of the British Grand Prix , this was partially due to pit stop problems and Button's temporary dip in form after not adapting as well as Hamilton to the new Pirelli tyres. The car also suffered reliability problems which cost
8384-613: The Mercedes engines to help Brawn run. Mercedes still continued providing engines to McLaren, albeit under a supplier-customer relationship rather than the works partnership as before, while it sold its 40% shares of McLaren over two years. McLaren signed 2009 champion, Jenson Button , to replace Kovalainen alongside Hamilton in 2010 . Button won twice (in Australia and China ) and Hamilton three times (in Turkey , Canada , and Belgium ), but they and McLaren failed to win their respective championships, that year's MP4-25 largely outpaced by Red Bull's RB6 . Hamilton and Button remained with
8515-633: The UK and upwards of 7000 active drivers. The sport is split into three basic divisions – distinguished by the rules regarding car contact during racing. The most famous championship are the BriSCA F1 Stock Cars . Full-contact formulas include Bangers , Bombers, and Rookie Bangers – and racing features Demolition Derbies, Figure of Eight, and Oval Racing. Semi Contact Formulas include BriSCA F1, F2, and Superstox – where bumpers are used tactically. Non-contact formulas include National Hot Rods, Stock Rods, and Lightning Rods. Martin Whitmarsh Martin Richard Whitmarsh (born 29 April 1958)
8646-532: The UK, the major club series are the Monoposto Racing Club , BRSCC F3 (formerly ClubF3, formerly ARP F3), Formula Vee and Club Formula Ford. Each series caters to a section of the market, with some primarily providing low-cost racing, while others aim for an authentic experience using the same regulations as the professional series (BRSCC F3). The SCCA is also responsible for sanctioning single-seater racing in much of North America. There are other categories of single-seater racing, including kart racing , which employs
8777-401: The US, is an economical and rules-restricted version of touring-car racing, mainly used to restrict costs. Numerous production racing categories are based on particular makes of cars. Most series, with a few exceptions, follow the Group N regulation. There are several different series that are run all over the world, most notably, Japan's Super Taikyu and IMSA 's Firehawk Series, which ran in
8908-409: The United States, including the NASCAR Canada Series , NASCAR Mexico Series , NASCAR Whelen Euro Series , and NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race . NASCAR also governs several smaller regional series, such as the Whelen Modified Tour . Modified cars are best described as open-wheel cars. Modified cars have no parts related to the stock vehicle for which they are named after. A number of modified cars display
9039-438: The United States, the most popular series is the IndyCar Series . The cars have traditionally been similar to, though less technologically sophisticated than, F1 cars , with more restrictions on technology aimed at controlling costs. While these cars are not as technologically advanced, they are faster, in part due to their lower downforce compared to F1 cars, and also because they compete on oval race tracks, being able to average
9170-490: The World Series by Renault, succession series of World Series by Nissan ), Formula Three , Formula Palmer Audi and Formula Atlantic . In 2009, the FIA Formula Two Championship brought about the revival of the F2 series. Domestic, or country-specific, series include Formula Three and Formula Renault, with the leading introductory series being Formula Ford . Single-seater racing is not limited merely to professional teams and drivers. There exist many amateur racing clubs. In
9301-421: The best 11 results counted, Senna took the title at the penultimate race in Japan . The next year, with turbos banned, Honda supplied a new 3.5-L naturally aspirated V10 engine and McLaren again won both titles with the MP4/5 . Their drivers' relationship continued to deteriorate, though, especially when, at the San Marino Grand Prix , Prost felt that Senna had reneged on an agreement not to pass each other at
9432-597: The best constructor behind Mercedes, Ferrari, and Red Bull. At the Brazilian Grand Prix , Sainz recorded the team's first podium since the 2014 Australian Grand Prix , finishing fourth on the road but later promoted to third after Lewis Hamilton received a post-race penalty, meaning that the team missed out on the official podium ceremony. McLaren ended the season in 4th place with 145 points, their best result since 2014 and 54 points ahead of their nearest competitor, Renault. McLaren retained Norris and Sainz for
9563-542: The best result being a fourth at Monaco . For 1968 , after driving McLaren's sole entry for the previous two years, Bruce was joined by 1967 champion and fellow New Zealander Denny Hulme , who was already racing for McLaren in Can-Am . That year's new M7A car, Herd's final design for the team, was powered by Cosworth 's new and soon to be ubiquitous DFV engine (the DFV would go on to be used by McLaren until 1983) and with it
9694-503: The board's purpose would be "to steer the future direction of Formula E as a key player in influencing the global uptake of electric vehicles and its impact on reducing emissions." In October 2021, Whitmarsh was appointed as Group CEO of the newly created Aston Martin Performance Technologies. Whitmarsh is responsible for combining Aston Martin's Formula One activities with developing, applying and taking to market
9825-487: The championship behind Niki Lauda . Hulme's replacement Jochen Mass took his sole GP win in Spain . At the end of 1975, Fittipaldi left to join his brother's Fittipaldi/Copersucar team. With the top drivers already signed to other teams, Mayer turned to James Hunt , a driver on whom biographer Gerald Donaldson reflected as having "a dubious reputation". In 1976 , Lauda was again strong in his Ferrari; at midseason, he led
9956-561: The championship up to the final race, eventually losing by two points. The team began 2004 with the MP4-19 , which technical director Adrian Newey described as "a debugged version of [the MP4-18]". It was not a success, though, and was replaced mid-season by the MP4-19B. With this, Räikkönen scored the team's and his only win of the year at the Belgian Grand Prix , as McLaren finished fifth in
10087-573: The championship with 56 points while Hunt had only 26 despite wins in Spain (a race from which he was initially disqualified) and France . At the German Grand Prix , though, Lauda crashed heavily, was nearly killed, and missed the next two races. Hunt capitalised by winning four more Grands Prix giving him a three-point deficit going into the finale in Japan . Here it rained torrentially, Lauda retired because of safety concerns, and Hunt sealed
10218-399: The combined entry being named Arrow McLaren SP . Initially having no ownership interest in the team, McLaren would purchase 75% of the operation in 2021. McLaren entered the electric off-road racing series Extreme E in 2022 , and also joined Formula E in the 2022–23 season . Bruce McLaren Motor Racing was founded in 1963 by New Zealander Bruce McLaren . Bruce was a works driver for
10349-484: The constructors' championship with 202 points. Sainz finished the driver's championship in sixth with 105 points and Norris in ninth with 97 points. Auto racing Auto racing (also known as car racing , motor racing , or automobile racing ) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. In North America, the term is commonly used to describe all forms of automobile sport including non-racing disciplines. Auto racing has existed since
10480-709: The design of both McLaren's Formula One M19 and Indianapolis M16 cars (itself inspired by Lotus 's 72 ), it was a mainstay for four years. Hulme won with it in Sweden and Revson took the only Grand Prix wins of his career in Britain and Canada . In 1974 , Emerson Fittipaldi , world champion with Lotus two years earlier, joined McLaren. Hulme, in his final Formula One campaign, won the Argentinian season-opener; Fittipaldi, with wins in Brazil , Belgium and Canada , took
10611-405: The end of 2013, after the team's worst season since 2004, Whitmarsh was ousted. McLaren announced in 2013 that they would be using Honda engines from 2015 onwards, replacing Mercedes-Benz. The team raced as McLaren Honda for the first time since 1992 at the 2015 Australian Grand Prix . In September 2017, McLaren announced they had agreed on an engine supply with Renault from 2018 to 2020. McLaren
10742-482: The event first aroused significant American interest in the automobile. The Targa Florio was an open road endurance automobile race held in the mountains of Sicily , Italy near the island's capital of Palermo . Founded in 1906 , it was the oldest sports car racing event, part of the World Sportscar Championship between 1955 and 1973. The oldest surviving sports car racing event is
10873-566: The final lap of the race. Despite winning his first Grand Prix in Hungary , Kovalainen finished the season only seventh in the overall standings, allowing Ferrari to take the constructors' title. Before the start of the 2009 season, Dennis retired as team principal, handing responsibility to Martin Whitmarsh , but the year started badly: the MP4-24 car was off the pace and the team was given
11004-503: The final three rounds of the season. Williams ultimately won both titles and Senna—who had flirted with moving there for 1993—signed with them for the 1994 season. During the 1993 season McLaren took part in a seven part BBC Television documentary called A Season With McLaren . McLaren tested a Lamborghini V12 engine ahead of the 1994 season, as part of a potential deal with the then-Lamborghini owner Chrysler , before eventually deciding to use Peugeot engines. With Peugeot power,
11135-469: The finish line first at the Belgian Grand Prix , he was deemed to have gained an illegal advantage by cutting a chicane during an overtake and was controversially demoted to third. Going into the final race in Brazil , Hamilton had a seven-point lead over Massa. Massa won there, but Hamilton dramatically clinched his first Drivers' Championship by moving into the necessary fifth position at the final corner of
11266-527: The first corner. Believing that Honda and Dennis were favouring Senna, Prost announced mid-season that he would leave to drive at Ferrari the following year. For the second year in succession, the Drivers' Championship was decided at the Japanese Grand Prix , this time in Prost's favour after Senna and he collided (Senna initially recovered and won the race, but was later disqualified). With former McLaren men Nichols and Prost (Barnard had moved to
11397-545: The first time in a decade. Montoya parted company acrimoniously with the team to race in NASCAR after the United States Grand Prix , where he crashed into Räikkönen at the start; test driver Pedro de la Rosa deputised for the remainder of the season. The team also lost Räikkönen to Ferrari at the end of the year. Steve Matchett argued that the poor reliability of McLaren in 2006 and recent previous years
11528-556: The first time, after the German manufacturer spent one year in partnership with the Sauber team. The partnership included free engines from Mercedes-Benz that built and assembled by Ilmor Engineering , Mercedes-Benz official team vehicles, financial support, also earned full-factory support from Daimler AG and Mercedes-Benz and also Mercedes-Benz and Ilmor staff would work with the team at their Woking base. McLaren's Formula One car for
11659-428: The four times America's Cup winner, on the understanding that the team would need someone with a full time focus on the racing team. Whitmarsh continues as an advisor to the team. Whitmarsh is the chairman and co-founder of BAR Technologies, a technology start-up business focussed on the marine sector and bringing innovative solutions to enhance the efficiency of marine products and reduce carbon emissions. Whitmarsh
11790-573: The grid. For 2015 , McLaren ended their engine deal with Mercedes which included buying back the 40% stake that Mercedes held in the team and reforging their historical partnership with Honda. The Honda deal not only meant they would supply engines, but that Honda staff would work with the team at their Woking base as well as received full-factory support from Honda including official team vehicles and free engines. The team announced Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button as their race drivers, with Kevin Magnussen demoted to test driver. During pre-season testing at
11921-620: The group's technical capabilities, as well as intellectual property. In 2015, Whitmarsh became chief executive officer of Ben Ainslie Racing , subsequently Land Rover BAR , the British America's Cup team. During Whitmarsh's tenure, the business competed in the 35th America's Cup but was eliminated in the semi-final by Emirates Team New Zealand who ultimately won the World Series. In 2017, Whitmarsh stepped aside as CEO of Land Rover Bar to be replaced by Grant Simmer ,
12052-600: The hands of Prost and Stefan Johansson , though, Nichols's MP4/3 and the TAG engine could not match the Williams-Honda. For 1988 , Honda switched their supply to McLaren and, encouraged by Prost, Dennis signed Ayrton Senna to drive. Despite regulations reducing the boost pressure and fuel capacity (and therefore, power) of the turbo cars, Honda persisted with a turbocharged engine. In the MP4/4 , Senna and Prost engaged in
12183-554: The invention of the automobile. Races of various types were organized, with the first recorded as early as 1867. Many of the earliest events were effectively reliability trials , aimed at proving these new machines were a practical mode of transport, but soon became an important way for automobile makers to demonstrate their machines. By the 1930s, specialist racing cars had developed. There are now numerous different categories, each with different rules and regulations. The first prearranged match race of two self-powered road vehicles over
12314-783: The last step up to premier GT-class racing. Other major GT championships include the GT World Challenge America , GT World Challenge Asia , Super GT , and the International GT Open . There are minor regional and national GT series using mainly GT4 and GT3 cars featuring both amateur and professional drivers. Sports prototypes, unlike GT cars, do not rely on road-legal cars as a base. They are closed-wheel and often closed-cockpit purpose-built race cars intended mainly for endurance racing. They have much lower weight, more horsepower and more downforce compared to GT cars, making them much faster. They are raced in
12445-614: The money to build it, but with investment that came with the merger it became the McLaren MP4 (later called MP4/1) of 1981 , driven by Watson and Andrea de Cesaris . In the MP4, Watson won the British Grand Prix and had three other podium finishes. Soon after the merger, McLaren moved from Colnbrook to a new base in Woking and Dennis and Mayer initially shared the managing directorship of the company; by 1982, Mayer had departed and Tyler Alexander's and his shareholdings had been bought by
12576-442: The most popular class of GT cars, with premier racing series such as the FIA World Endurance Championship and IMSA both using GT3 as their top class of GT car. GT3 cars have more significant aero than a GT2 car, but also have less horsepower, typically falling in between 500 and 550 horsepower. GT4 class cars have very little aerodynamics and less horsepower than GT3 machinery, typically around 450 horsepower. GT4 typically serves as
12707-485: The new owners. In the early 1980s, teams like Renault , Ferrari and Brabham were using 1.5-litre turbocharged engines in favour of the 3.0-litre naturally aspirated engines that had been standard since 1966. Having seen in 1982 the need for a turbo engine of their own, Dennis had convinced Williams backer Techniques d'Avant Garde (TAG) to fund Porsche -built, TAG-branded turbo engines made to Barnard's specifications; TAG's founder Mansour Ojjeh would later become
12838-464: The oldest car racing series still active in the world. The first TC competition took place in 1931 with 12 races, each in a different province. Future Formula One star Juan Manuel Fangio (Chevrolet) won the 1940 and 1941 editions of the TC. It was during this time that the series' Chevrolet-Ford rivalry began, with Ford acquiring most of its historical victories. Over the last few years, auto racing has seen
12969-574: The oldest existing purpose-built and still in use automobile race course in the United States is the 2.5-mile-long (4.0 km) Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana . It is the largest capacity sports venue of any variety worldwide, with a top capacity of some 257,000+ seated spectators. NASCAR was founded by Bill France Sr. on February 21, 1948, with the help of several other drivers. The first NASCAR " Strictly Stock " race ever
13100-489: The organisation. In January 2009, Whitmarsh was elevated to president of the Formula One Teams Association (FOTA), replacing Ferrari chairman and FOTA founder Luca Cordero di Montezemolo . Whitmarsh maintained this position for four years until he stated that he would not stand for re-election in 2013 In 2017, Whitmarsh joined the Global Advisory Board member of the Formula E . A series statement said
13231-517: The overall unreliability of the MP4-20 cost several race victories when Räikkönen had been leading or in contention to win and also costing him grid positions in some qualifying sessions, which allowed Renault and their driver Fernando Alonso to capitalise and win both titles. In 2006 , the superior reliability and speed of the Ferraris and Renaults prevented the team from gaining any victories for
13362-551: The previous year from principal sponsor Philip Morris and their executive John Hogan, Mayer was coerced into merging McLaren with Ron Dennis 's Project Four Formula Two team, also sponsored by Philip Morris. Dennis had designer John Barnard who, inspired by the carbon-fibre rear wings of the BMW M1 race cars that Project Four was preparing, had ideas for an innovative Formula One chassis constructed from carbon-fibre instead of conventional aluminium alloy . On their own, they lacked
13493-569: The reduction of the schedule from 56 to 34 races a year, established 1972 as the beginning of NASCAR's "modern era". The IMSA GT Series evolved into the American Le Mans Series , which ran its first season in 1998. The European races eventually became the closely related European Le Mans Series , both of which mix prototypes and GTs. Turismo Carretera (TC) is a popular touring car racing series in Argentina, and one of
13624-406: The respective championships. From there, results continued to worsen. Lotus and Mario Andretti took the 1978 titles with their 78 and 79 ground-effect cars and neither Hunt nor Mass's replacement Patrick Tambay were able to seriously challenge with the nonground-effect M26. Hunt was dropped at the end of 1978 in favour of Lotus's Ronnie Peterson , but when Peterson was killed by a crash at
13755-672: The season with a sixth-place after qualifying third in a wet/dry session. After a disappointing display at their home race, the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, the team scored points at the next three rounds with six points in Hungary, four in Germany, and six points again thanks to an impressive seventh-place finish from Alonso at the Belgian Grand Prix . At the United States Grand Prix , McLaren matched their Monaco result with 12 points after an attacking race from Alonso saw him claim fifth position while Button once again finished ninth. After
13886-411: The season, Hamilton was involved in several incidents with other drivers including – most notably – multiple collisions with 2008 title rival Massa. In 2012 , McLaren won the first race of the year in Australia with a dominant victory by Button and a 3rd place from pole for Hamilton, while Hamilton went on to win in Canada , but by the mid-way mark of the season at the team's home race at Silverstone,
14017-456: The season-opening Australian Grand Prix ; Häkkinen and he would each win another race before the end of the season, and highly rated designer Adrian Newey joined the team from Williams in August that year. Despite the car's improved pace, unreliability proved costly throughout the season, with retirements at the British and Luxembourg Grands Prix occurring whilst Häkkinen was in the lead. It
14148-421: The second-worst average qualifying ranking of any team, only ahead of Williams . The team finished the disappointing season – after being helped by the exclusion of Force India 's points from the first 12 races – in 6th place with 62 points, 357 points behind their target, Red Bull Racing, with the same engine. The 2019 season was much more positive for McLaren, with the team securely establishing themselves as
14279-477: The sport, McLaren were once again able to challenge for the championship. Häkkinen and Coulthard won five of the first six races despite the banning of the team's "brake steer" system, which allowed the rear brakes to be operated individually to reduce understeer , after a protest by Ferrari at the second race in Brazil . Schumacher and Ferrari provided the greatest competition, the former levelled on points with Häkkinen with two races to go, but wins for Häkkinen at
14410-759: The sport, former Formula 2 champion Jonathan Palmer reopened the F2 category again; most drivers have graduated from the Formula Palmer Audi series. The category is officially registered as the FIA Formula Two championship. Most rounds have two races and are support races to the FIA World Touring Car Championship . Touring car racing is a style of road racing that is run with production-derived four-seat race cars. The lesser use of aerodynamics means following cars have
14541-545: The start of a decline in form as Ferrari cemented their dominance of Formula One and also beryllium engine material banned in Formula One that affected Mercedes engine performance. In 2001 , Häkkinen was outscored by Coulthard for the first time since 1997 and retired (ending Formula One's longest ever driver partnership), his place taken by Kimi Räikkönen , then in 2002 , Coulthard took their solitary win at Monaco while Ferrari repeated McLaren's 1988 feat of 15 wins in
14672-559: The team and its drivers numerous potential points, most notably in Singapore and Abu Dhabi , where Hamilton had been leading from the front in both races and in Italy where the team lost a 1-2 finish when Button's car failed with fuel problems on lap 33. Sergio Pérez replaced Hamilton for 2013 , after Hamilton decided to leave for Mercedes . The team's car for the season, the MP4-28 ,
14803-470: The team finishing third in the Constructors' Championship. McLaren gave Jody Scheckter his Formula One debut at the final race at Watkins Glen . All McLaren drivers used the Ford-Cosworth engines, except for Andrea de Adamich and Nanni Galli who used engines from Alfa Romeo in 1970. The McLaren M23 , designed by Gordon Coppuck, was the team's new car for the 1973 season. Sharing parts of
14934-434: The team into 2011 , with Hamilton winning three races – China , Germany , and Abu Dhabi and Button also winning three races – Canada , Hungary , and Japan . Button finished the Drivers' Championship in second place with 270 points behind 2011 Drivers' Champion Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull Racing, ahead of Hamilton's 227 points. McLaren was second in the Constructors' Championship to Red Bull Racing. Throughout
15065-520: The team mid-season, and Gethin took over from there. While 1971 began promisingly when Hulme led the opening round in South Africa before retiring with broken suspension, ultimately Hulme, Gethin (who left for BRM mid-season,) and Jackie Oliver again failed to score a win. The 1972 season saw improvements though: Hulme won the team's first Grand Prix for 2 + 1 ⁄ 2 years in South Africa and he and Peter Revson scored ten other podiums,
15196-458: The team took six Constructors' Championships. The combination of Prost and Senna was particularly dominant—together they won all but one race in 1988 —but later their rivalry soured and Prost left for Ferrari. Fellow English team Williams offered the most consistent challenge during this period, the two winning every constructors' title between 1984 and 1994 . By the mid-1990s, Honda had withdrawn from Formula One, Senna had moved to Williams, and
15327-464: The team went three seasons without a win. With Mercedes-Benz engines, West sponsorship, and former Williams designer Adrian Newey , further championships came in 1998 and 1999 with driver Mika Häkkinen , and during the 2000s the team were consistent front-runners, with driver Lewis Hamilton taking their latest title in 2008 . Ron Dennis retired as McLaren team principal in 2009, handing over to long-time McLaren employee Martin Whitmarsh . At
15458-576: The team won its first Grand Prix at the 1968 Belgian Grand Prix , but their greatest initial success was in Can-Am, which they dominated from 1967 to 1971. Further American triumph followed, with Indianapolis 500 wins in McLaren cars for Mark Donohue in 1972 and Johnny Rutherford in 1974 and 1976 . After Bruce McLaren died in a testing accident in 1970, Teddy Mayer took over and led the team to their first Formula One Constructors' Championship in 1974 , with Emerson Fittipaldi and James Hunt winning
15589-500: The team's Grand Prix debut at the 1966 Monaco race (of the current Formula One teams, only Ferrari is older). His race ended after nine laps due to a terminal oil leak. The 1966 car was the M2B designed by Robin Herd , but the programme was hampered by a poor choice of engines: a 3.0-litre version of Ford 's Indianapolis 500 engine and a Serenissima V8 were used, the latter scoring
15720-521: The team's best finish since the 2016 Monaco Grand Prix with fifth, Alonso said that the team's target would be Red Bull Racing. McLaren had a relatively good start to the season with points finishes in the next four races, but in the next 16 races after Spain, McLaren only scored 22 points, 8 points less than in the same period in 2017. On 14 August 2018, Fernando Alonso announced he would not compete in Formula One in 2019, ending his four-year spell at
15851-455: The team's first (four) points of the season at the sixth round in Monaco . By contrast, Alonso scored his first point three races later at the British Grand Prix . The Hungarian Grand Prix saw the team score their best result of the season with Alonso and Button finishing fifth and ninth, respectively. However, McLaren did not score points in the next four races until Button finished ninth at
15982-556: The team's first point in Britain , but both were underpowered and unreliable. For 1967 Bruce decided to use a British Racing Motors (BRM) V12 engine , but due to delays with the engine, was forced initially to use a modified Formula Two car called the M4B powered by a 2.1-litre BRM V8, later building a similar but slightly larger car called the M5A for the V12. Neither car brought great success,
16113-525: The team's first point of the season with 10th place. The next points for McLaren came at the Russian Grand Prix with Alonso and Button finishing sixth and 10th respectively. The rain-affected Monaco Grand Prix was one of best races of the season for the team. Alonso finished fifth, having kept Nico Rosberg 's Mercedes behind him for 46 laps, while Button scored two points with ninth. At the Austrian Grand Prix , Button recorded his best result of
16244-436: The team. Carlos Sainz Jr. was signed as his replacement on a multi-year deal. On 3 September 2018, it was announced that Stoffel Vandoorne would be leaving the team at the end of the season, with Lando Norris being promoted from reserve driver to replace him in 2019. McLaren struggled with performance throughout the season, with the McLaren drivers being knocked out 21 times in the first qualifying session, and McLaren having
16375-583: Was also at the start of this season that saw long time sponsor, Marlboro, shift its support to long time rival Ferrari. For the first time since the 1974 season, McLaren would have a new identity, shifting to fellow tobacco sponsor West. This saw the traditional red and white replaced with silver, grey, white and red. McLaren would retain this colour scheme (or very similar) for twenty years until 2017. With Newey able to take advantage of new technical regulations for 1998 , and with Williams losing their works Renault engines following Renault's temporary withdrawal from
16506-463: Was created in 2006. The group was an assemblage of drivers from different racing disciplines and formed for an MTV reality pilot, which was shot at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca . In December 2005, the FIA gave approval to Superleague Formula racing, which debuted in 2008, whereby the racing teams are owned and run by prominent sports clubs such as A.C. Milan and Liverpool F.C. After 25 years away from
16637-561: Was due to a lack of team continuity and stability. His cited examples of instability are logistical challenges related to the move to the McLaren Technology Centre , Adrian Newey's aborted move to Jaguar and later move to Red Bull, the subsequent move of Newey's deputy to Red Bull, and personnel changes at Ilmor. After scoring no victories in 2006, the team returned to competitive status in 2007 . That year saw Fernando Alonso race alongside Formula One debutant and long-time McLaren protégé Lewis Hamilton . The pair scored four wins each and led
16768-744: Was held on June 19, 1949, at Daytona Beach, Florida , U.S.. From 1962, sports cars temporarily took a back seat to GT cars , with the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) replacing the World Championship for Sports Cars with the International Championship for GT Manufacturers. From 1962 through 2003, NASCAR's premier series was called the Winston Cup Series, sponsored by R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company cigarette brand Winston . The changes that resulted from RJR's involvement, as well as
16899-422: Was launched on 31 January 2013. The car struggled to compete with the other top teams and the season had McLaren fail to produce a podium finish for the first time since 1980 . Kevin Magnussen replaced Pérez for 2014 , and Ron Dennis, who had remained at arm's length since stepping down from the team principal role, returned as CEO of the operation. McLaren was the first team to officially launch their 2014 car,
17030-913: Was promoted to the position of managing director and in April 2004, he was again promoted, this time to the position of chief operating officer of McLaren Group and chief executive officer of McLaren Racing. On 1 March 2009, Ron Dennis stepped down as head of McLaren Racing to take a role in McLaren Automotive and Whitmarsh became team principal as a result, and a year later he was appointed to two new roles: chief executive officer of McLaren Group and deputy chairman of McLaren Automotive. Whitmarsh left his position as CEO of McLaren Racing and McLaren Group in January 2014 and replaced by his predecessor Ron Dennis in January 2014. He formally parted ways with McLaren in August 2014 after 25 years with
17161-472: Was the world's first purpose-built motor racing circuit , opening in January 1906. The pear-shaped track was close to a mile in length, with slightly banked curves and a gravel surface of crushed cement. Brooklands , in Surrey, England, was the first purpose-built 'banked' motor racing venue, opening in June 1907. It featured a 4.43 km (2.75 mi) concrete track with high-speed banked corners. One of
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