McLaren Racing will enter Formula E next season. Rumors circulated that the legendary Formula 1 team would be expanding into the electric single-seater series alongside other new ventures such as Extreme E and IndyCar, but the news became official on Saturday morning.
“McLaren Racing always strives to compete with the best and at the forefront of technology, and to offer our fans, partners and people new ways to excite, entertain and inspire,” said Zak Brown, CEO of McLaren Racing .
“Like all of our racing series, Formula E meets all of these criteria. As with all sports we participate in, Formula E has racing at its core but will contribute strategically, commercially and technically to McLaren Racing as a whole. I have a strong belief that Formula E will provide McLaren Racing with a competitive advantage through a better understanding of EV racing, while providing a differentiator for our fans, partners and employees and continuing to push us forward on our sustainability journey,” said Brown .
The announcement also clears up the question mark hanging over the Mercedes EQ team, which won the championship in its seventh season. While Formula E has lured several OEMs into its playground over the past eight years, quite a few have stayed for just a few seasons, in part due to limited opportunities for technology transfer from the racetrack to roadworthy EVs.
That was the stated reason why Stuttgart pulled the plug on Mercedes-EQ and said it wanted to focus its efforts on Formula One when it announced plans to quit last August. But instead of closing, McLaren Racing will take over operations, which are based in Brackley, England, alongside the Mercedes-AMG F1 team.
“Today’s announcement confirms the next exciting chapter in the development of the team,” said Mercedes EQ Team Principal Ian James, who will continue in his leadership role.
“Since our founding in 2019, performance, sustainability and adaptability have been the keys to our success. Becoming part of the McLaren Racing family is a privilege: McLaren has always been synonymous with success and high performance. This is a great moment for everyone involved, but especially for the people who make up this team. You are what makes his heart beat faster. That’s what I’m most looking forward to, continuing to work with them. I’m really looking forward to the next chapter for the team and will be a proud member of it in Season 9. Until then, we will focus on delivering the best possible results as the Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team for the remainder of the current season,” said James.
Engineering development remains limited for next season’s Gen3 car, which will be much faster than the machine it replaces. But other series McLaren is involved with – like IndyCar – also show limited technology development in favor of close, fun racing, so there’s reason to believe McLaren will be around for a while.
One thing it won’t do is build its own powertrain; as in Formula 1 and IndyCar, this will come from an external supplier, although McLaren has not made anything public in this regard.
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