McLaren back in the Mercedes fold from 2021

McLaren-Mercedes, an alliance synonymous with numerous victories and the latest Drivers' and Manufacturers' world titles for the famous British team.

As revealed by our colleague Joe Saward on Friday evening, the glorious association will be reborn in 2021 after the announcement this Saturday in Sochi that McLaren will once again use Mercedes engines at the end of its current contract with Renault, which covers the period 2018-2020. 

Partners in Formula 1 since the 1995 season, McLaren and Mercedes separated at the end of 2014 on the evening of the first season of the current turbo V6s. Ron Dennis, historic boss of the British team, believed at the time that an engine customer team no longer had the weapons to win in Grands Prix at the dawn of a new hybrid era. 

History has proven him right since Mercedes and its factory team have been undefeated in the championship since 2014. To continue to play at the forefront, Dennis took the gamble of reconnecting with Honda as part of an exclusive and lucrative partnership. 10 years old. The lack of performance and reliability of the English propeller will cause the Anglo-Japanese couple to explode after just three short seasons. 

Without an engine manufacturer, McLaren had already tried to reconnect with Mercedes and finally found refuge with Renault. The first season of the Woking axis-Viruses Châtillon highlighted the deficiencies of the orange chassis, until then hidden by the shortcomings of the Honda unit. 

While 2019 represents a real step forward for McLaren, the Surrey team has chosen to reconnect with the engine manufacturer that powered it during its most recent victorious world campaigns. Together, McLaren and Mercedes have won three Drivers' titles with Mika Häkkinen (1998 and 1999) and Lewis Hamilton (2008) and a crown among the Constructors (1998). 

« This agreement represents an important step forward on our path back to long-term success, commented Zak Brown, director of McLaren Racing. Mercedes is today the benchmark on the grid, both as a team and an engine manufacturer. It is therefore a logical choice to want to partner with them for the next stage of our development. This announcement highlights the confidence of our shareholders and sends a strong message to our investors, employees, and partners that we are determined to return McLaren to the top ». 

« We are very pleased to welcome McLaren back to the Mercedes-Benz family, added Toto wolff. We hope that this long-term agreement will mark a new step in making McLaren a team able to compete with the top teams in the discipline, including our factory team. ».

Andreas Seidl does not forget to salute the work carried out this season by Renault, with whom McLaren is competing for 4th place among the Manufacturers. “ They remain a valuable partner, as well as a first-rate competitor.", commented the main team from Woking, who were however alarmed by the engine reliability problems encountered by McLaren this season. 

In theory, an engine manufacturer can only supply three stables, factory structure included. However, Mercedes already has a long-term agreement with Williams until 2025 and it is rumored that Racing Point enjoys a similar contract. However, the FIA ​​can authorize a manufacturer to equip a larger fleet of teams. Mechanically, Renault will then find itself with a single team, its factory team, which is in line with its objectives according to the Diamond.