All-new McLaren-Honda MCL32 breaks cover

“Its colour scheme incorporates a significant nod to our team’s founder, the great Bruce McLaren, but it’s deliberately not orange all over. The black stripes and white trims not only add to the overall aesthetic effect but also reference more recent colour schemes as well as the traditional corporate colour of our much-valued power unit partner, Honda, whose engineers have been toiling night and day over the past few months.

“I’ve been involved in Formula 1 far too long to make precise performance predictions – more than 30 years – but I can say without fear of contradiction that we’re now in a very good place: we’ve got the right people, with the right attitude, motivated by the right kind of collaborative ambition, and we’re ready to continue to work as hard as is humanly possible to do what it takes to succeed.

“I’m proud of them all.”

New senior management

While much may have changed on the surface, the core McLaren philosophy of ultra-hi-tech and attention to detail remains undiminished, and the new partnership of Executive Director Zak Brown and Chief Operating Officer Jonathan Neale has underlined and galvanised that ambition, supported very capably by Racing Director Eric Boullier.

Together, led and inspired by the Executive Committee, they have ushered in a wind of positive change to the McLaren Technology Centre, inspiring and empowering the workforce with their passion for the brand and their determination eventually to return McLaren to the top step of the podium.

Zak Brown says:

“McLaren has always been the team in Formula 1 for me, and I’m massively motivated to be able to help re-establish the team where I firmly believe it belongs: at the very pinnacle of Formula 1.

“Assisting us reach that goal will be a fantastic group of partners that have supported us throughout the years, ranging from long-term collaborations with SAP and Johnnie Walker, through to our newest partnerships with Castrol and Stratasys, both of which have been announced this year. I want to say on behalf of the entire McLaren-Honda team: a massive thank you to all our partners for all your amazing enthusiasm and support.

“Indeed, I’m hugely encouraged by the amount of attention this year’s McLaren-Honda launch has garnered, and by the number of our partners in attendance – not only at the McLaren Thought Leadership Centre in Woking [UK], but also at our concurrent event in Tokyo [Japan], which is taking place at a Hilton hotel; Hilton is one of our partners, of course.

“To everyone who has given us their support, today is the perfect opportunity to raise a glass of Chandon, which is another one of our partners, to celebrate the launch of our new car.”

Jonathan Neale adds:

“It has been a challenging winter for us as a leadership team, but there’s a great sense of purpose and enthusiasm throughout the business this year, and that applies not only to the McLaren Technology Group but also to our power unit partner Honda. Together, we’ve assembled a formidably capable team, but we still have work to do in order to fulfil our true potential. Together with our staff, the Board of Directors, and with the guidance and support of our Executive Committee Principals, we’re working extremely hard as we continue to put the essential elements of future success in place.




There are no comments

Add yours