McLaren Profile: Drivers, Owner, Power Unit & more

McLaren is a name synonymous with Formula 1 and the racing team have been a beacon for automotive innovation and excellence in the 60 years they have graced the sport.

McLaren F1 stats

Race Entries	971
Wins	190
Podiums	524
Pole Positions	165
Fastest Laps	173
Constructors' Championships	9
Drivers' Championships	12
Points	6457.5

*Statistics were correct as of 19/03/2025

When did McLaren enter F1?

McLaren were founded in 1963 by Bruce McLaren and made their Grand Prix debut in 1966, making them the second oldest F1 team behind Ferrari.

McLaren racing drivers

Current drivers

McLaren's current driver pairing consists of Lando Norris from Great Britain and Oscar Piastri from Australia.

Drivers to have won the World Championship at McLaren

McLaren have won 12 Drivers' Championship titles since their inaugural entry in 1966, of which six belong to Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost who shared three apiece.

Emerson Fittipaldi was the first driver to win the World Championship in a McLaren in 1974 before James Hunt followed in 1976 and Niki Lauda in 1984.

Lauda's triumphed signalled the start of a dominant decade for McLaren with Prost winning the 1985, 1986 and 1989 championships, while Senna prevailed in 1988, 1990 and 1991.

Mika Hakkinen sealed McLaren's 10th Drivers' Championship in 1998 and repeated the feat in 1999, before Lewis Hamilton etched his name into the history books in 2008.

Other notable McLaren drivers

Several world champions have raced for McLaren including Kimi Raikkonen, Jenson Button, Fernando Alonso, Nigel Mansell, Keke Rosberg and Jody Scheckter.

Other notable race winners include Gilles Villeneuve, David Coulthard, Juan Pablo Montoya, Gerhard Berger, Daniel Ricciardo, John Watson and Denny Hulme.

Who owns McLaren?

The team is a subsidiary of the McLaren Group, which was founded by Ron Dennis in 1985, four years after his acquisition of the team in 1981.

In March 2024, the sovereign wealth fund of the Kingdom of Bahrain acquired all outstanding shares of McLaren Group, meaning McLaren are now primarily owned by the royal family of Bahrain.

McLaren key staff

McLaren chief executive officer

The passionate Zak Brown is McLaren's CEO, a position he's held since 2018.

Brown is a notable figure on the Netflix docuseries 'Drive to Survive'.

McLaren team principal

Andrea Stella replaced Andreas Seidl as McLaren's team principal ahead of the 2023 season and the Italian led the team to its first Constructors' Championship success since 1998.

Stella began his career with Ferrari in 2000 and spent 14 years with the Italian manufacturer before joining McLaren as head of race operations in 2015.

McLaren technical directors

McLaren have four technical directors, including Rob Marshall (chief designer), Neil Houldey (engineering), Peter Prodromou (aerodynamics) and Mark Temple (performance).

McLaren power unit

McLaren are powered by Mercedes-Benz power units after signing a deal until 2030.

McLaren's 2025 model, the MCL36, is powered by a Mercedes-AMG F1 M13 E Performance 1.6 V6 turbocharged hybrid engine.

Where are McLaren from?

Although McLaren's creator, Bruce McLaren, proudly hailed from New Zealand, the racing team was founded in England.

Where are McLaren based?

McLaren's headquarters is a state-of-the-art facility called the McLaren Technology Centre, which is located in Woking and was first opened in 2004.