As the streets of Monaco echo with the roar of engines, history resonates deeply this weekend. Regardless of allegiance, it is impossible not to acknowledge McLaren's remarkable achievement and contribution to Formula One as the team, which debuted here in 1966, contests its 1,000th grand prix.
From Humble Beginnings to a Racing Empire
Bruce McLaren, the team's founder, brought his first F1 car, the M2B, to Monaco in 1966. On Thursday, that same car was driven once again by double world champion Mika Hakkinen to mark the milestone race. The team has since amassed 203 victories, 13 drivers' titles, and 10 constructors' championships, making it the second-most successful and longest-lived team in F1, behind only Ferrari.
The journey began modestly. McLaren qualified 10th in that 1966 race but retired with an oil leak after just 10 laps. Undeterred, he pressed on. The team started with only six people: McLaren; his wife Patty, who served as his assistant and official timekeeper; Eoin Young, the general manager; and mechanics Wally Willmott, Tyler Alexander, and the newly appointed 23-year-old New Zealander Howden Ganley.
“We started in a little workshop in New Malden,” recalled Ganley. “We had a portion of a contractor’s shed, working among bulldozers. The floor was broken concrete, almost just dirt. We had a wooden workbench with a vice, a drill press, and some welding bottles—the bare minimum.”
Bruce McLaren's Vision and Tragic Loss
McLaren, as leader, driver, and designer, was driven by an inexorable will. In 1968, he secured the team's first win at Spa, a remarkable feat for a fledgling outfit. More victories would surely have followed, but tragedy struck in 1970. While testing the M8D sports car at Goodwood, McLaren spun off the track and struck a concrete marshal post, killing him at age 32. Yet, his passion and motivation were so deeply instilled in the team that there was no thought of stopping. “He was the greatest leader of men I have ever met in all my life,” Ganley said.
A Roll Call of Champions
The team pressed on. Emerson Fittipaldi, also in Monaco this weekend, secured McLaren's first drivers' championship in 1974. James Hunt followed in 1976. Under Ron Dennis's leadership from 1981, McLaren claimed seven constructors' titles between 1984 and 1998. The team's champions include Niki Lauda, Alain Prost, Ayrton Senna, Lewis Hamilton, and most recently Lando Norris in 2024.
Norris, who has raced 156 times for McLaren—more than any other driver—said, “It’s a team I think a lot of people want to be a part of. To be alongside Lewis, Senna, and Prost in terms of drivers who have driven for the team, helped win constructors’, and achieved a world championship—that makes me smile more than just saying ‘I’ve won a race’. That’s something I’ll look back on and be happy about.”
Revival and Resilience
Norris joined as the team emerged from a difficult period. Between 2015 and 2017, McLaren fell to the back of the grid, leading many to believe the once-mighty marque had faded. However, under CEO Zak Brown and team principal Andrea Stella, they fought back to win the constructors' title in 2024 and the drivers' and constructors' double the following year. This revival demonstrated the tenacity Bruce McLaren would have been proud of.
A Family-Like Culture
Mark Temple joined McLaren straight from university at age 23 in 2003. Starting in gearbox design, he later became Lewis Hamilton's performance engineer and race engineer, and is now McLaren's performance technical engineer. After more than two decades, Temple believes the team's longevity owes much to McLaren's inspiration. “It’s much more than just a job for everyone here,” he said. “That sense of being part of a team that is bigger than any individual helps create a common purpose. People were still proud to work for McLaren even when we finished ninth in the championship. If your team looks after you, you want to look after the team. In that way, it’s like family.”
This weekend in Monaco, win or lose, McLaren has every right to celebrate. As always in F1, the focus is on future success, but they have earned this moment to reflect on a storied past.
