McLaren will celebrate its 1,000th Formula One Grand Prix start at the Monaco Grand Prix on June 7, 2026, marking over 60 years of competition in the sport [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. Founded in 1963 by New Zealander Bruce McLaren and American Teddy Mayer, the team made its F1 debut at Monaco on May 22, 1966 [1, 3, 5].
Bruce McLaren died in a crash at Goodwood in 1970 at the age of 32. After his death, Teddy Mayer took over the team’s leadership [1, 3]. McLaren’s first major success came in 1974 when Emerson Fittipaldi won the team’s first drivers' championship and helped secure the first constructors' title. Fittipaldi recalled the intense pressure of that season, saying, "He was next to me and I was thinking: who's going to be champion? Me or Clay? I only slept three hours before the grand prix... that was the maximum pressure a driver can get" [2].
The team moved to Woking, England, in 1981 with Ron Dennis as principal and pioneered the first carbon fibre chassis under designer John Barnard [1, 3]. Ayrton Senna joined McLaren in 1988 alongside Alain Prost, helping the team dominate the season with 15 wins out of 16 races powered by Honda engines [1, 3]. Neil Oatley, an engineer at McLaren, described the 1993 car, Senna’s last with the team, as "an engineers' playground" full of advanced technologies [2].
McLaren ranks as the second most successful Formula 1 team, boasting 203 Grand Prix victories as of 2026 [5]. The team has won 13 drivers' championships and 10 constructors' titles in total [2, 4, 5]. Lando Norris captured McLaren’s 13th drivers' championship in 2025, ending Max Verstappen’s four-year dominance. Norris said, "My love has always been with McLaren. It's always been the team that I've supported since I was a kid and it's a cool story of how it all started. Different teams are special for different reasons and McLaren is special for the amount of champions that they've had and the success they've had over the years" [2, 4, 5].
McLaren’s milestone 1,000th start will take place at the Monaco Grand Prix on June 7, 2026, 60 years after their F1 debut at the same circuit [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].
