McLaren Racing will join the ABB Formula E World Championship from season nine after they added the Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team to their global portfolio.
In 2021, the company signed an option to participate in season nine, which involved an evaluation period, where McLaren entered the all-electric off-road series, Extreme E.
The acquisition enables McLaren to further their commitment to EV motorsport, accelerate their sustainability journey and reach a new global audience.
The deal is expected to be completed later this year, with Ian James continuing to lead the team through the transition at the end of the season.
Commenting on the deal, McLaren Racing CEO, Zak Brown, said: “McLaren Racing always seeks to compete against the best and on the leading edge of technology, providing our fans, partners and people with new ways to be excited, entertained and inspired.”
“Formula E, like all our racing series, fulfils all those criteria.
“As with all forms of the sport we participate in, Formula E has racing at the centre but will be strategically, commercially and technically additive to McLaren Racing overall.
“It is also satisfying to provide a home for the class-leading Formula E team that Mercedes has built, which will become a fully-fledged part of the McLaren Racing family.
“While run separately to our F1 and IndyCar teams, Formula E complements and builds out our EV racing programme alongside Extreme E.
“I firmly believe that Formula E will give McLaren Racing a competitive advantage through greater understanding of EV racing, while providing a point of difference to our fans, partners and people, and continuing to drive us along our sustainability pathway,” he said.
Mercedes Formula E team principal, Ian James, added: “Today’s announcement confirms the next exciting chapter in the development of the team.
“Since our inception in 2019, performance, sustainability and adaptability have been the keys to our success.”
“Mercedes-Benz have been the main enablers for this team so far and when we started this journey, we could only have hoped for the results we’ve achieved to date.
“The company’s clear objectives and technological expertise accelerated our ambitions, and I would like to thank them for being the most supportive owner by helping us to do what we do best: racing.
“Now, once again, they have been instrumental in securing the right partner to continue our Formula E journey
“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 all parties involved but, above all, for the people that make up this team.
“They are what keeps its heart beating.
“Being able to continue working with them is what I am most excited about,” he said.
Additionally, details on the driver line-up, engine supplier and commercial partners will be announced at a later date.
The announcement comes after McLaren partnered cloud-services company, VMware.
