Pole position

Gracing the parc fermés of the 2015 Formula One season, McLaren’s MP4-30, designed by distinguished racing specialists, Tim Goss and Neil Oatley, marked a new chapter in McLaren Racing’s history. Yet its departure from Mercedes AMG after two decades and its subsequent return to Honda left McLaren and the MP4-30 cast in the shadow of redevelopment. Today, McLaren has announced the official release of the MCL32, representing the brand’s most radical change in design and vehicle specifications.

Glancing back to the colours of its triumphant inception, the MCL32 dons a throwback livery that pays homage to the team’s first professional win in 1968 with a blood orange accompanying a satin black across the vehicle’s sleek and angular bodywork. London-based brand consultancy, the Clearing, undertook the project with McLaren’s heritage at the forefront of the design outlook. Andy Howell, creative director and founder at the Clearing, says, “The new car livery is a significant shift away from the traditional coach lines and go faster stripes associated with Formula 1. It’s been incredibly exciting to be part of the team drawing inspiration from McLaren’s past to create this bold, striking livery design for the future.”

The MCL32 also marks the end of McLaren’s former naming system, notable in its wide range of ‘MP’ models signifying the longstanding sponsorship of Marlboro as ‘Marlboro Project.’ The new model does away with title sponsorship, choosing to focus on regenerating the car through Honda technology, namely the new RA617H engine that the MCL32 will feature, equally bolstered by new fuel partnerships with BP and Castrol after ending its longstanding deal with ExxonMobil.

Stoffel Vandoorne, professional F1 racer for the McLaren Racing team, says, “It’s really nice to see a McLaren looking like a proper McLaren. The livery is a great mix of the past and the future: the orange of the 1960s and ’70s, but pushed forwards. I really like it. As for the car itself, it looks great. There are so many beautiful little details – the gills on the nose hangers, the bargeboards, the front wing – it all looks incredibly well finished and thoroughly thought-out.”