Chassis, engine, team principal: McLaren unveils the outline of its WEC project

The first stone has been laid. After announcing his return to WEC in 2027, McLaren revealed the outlines of his project on the sidelines of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, where the British manufacturer is celebrating this year the 30th anniversary of the McLaren victory F1 GTR from its first participation, in 1995, with Yannick Dalmas, JJ Lehto and Masanori Sekiya.

The first announcement, and not the least, concerns the team's name. The future team will be called "McLaren United Autosports," as it will be operated by the American entity United Autosports. This is hardly surprising, since United already operates the McLaren 720S in LMGT3 via a logical partnership: the American team was founded in 2009 by... Zak Brown, who has since become CEO of McLaren Racing.

McLaren United AS will, as expected, enter a LMDh with a Dallara chassis. The Italian manufacturer already produces the chassis for all the teams.IndyCar, including McLaren. The engine will be a twin-turbo V6 designed jointly by McLaren Racing and McLaren Automotive.

McLaren will reveal more details about its Hypercar on Saturday morning, before the start of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, by presenting the prototype to the public in the village. "McLaren's return to the World ChampionshipEndurance marks the beginning of a new and exciting chapter for us,” enthuses Zak Brown, present in Sarthe this weekend.

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Dallara takes care of the chassis and will assist McLaren on the engine

The American has appointed James Barclay as Team Principal of McLaren United AS. The current Managing Director of JLR Motorsport and Team Principal of Jaguar TCS Racing in Formula E will take up his duties in September. “James’ leadership will be essential in the coming months as we prepare for our arrival in 2027.”, says Zak Brown. “We have a rich history in this sport, and with James at the helm, we are confident that McLaren Endurance Racing will quickly become a competitive and successful team. I look forward to seeing this new adventure take shape and unveiling our car to the fans.”

“I am honored to join a brand with such a heritage in motorsport”, rejoices James Barclay. “The passion and commitment to performance that McLaren embodies has always inspired me. I look forward to the challenge of building a team capable of competing at the highest level, while embodying the pioneering spirit that McLaren is renowned for.”

The manufacturer returns to Le Mans with the ambition of winning and continuing its legacy: the team founded by Bruce McLaren is the only one to have won the unofficial Triple Crown of motorsport (Indianapolis 500, F1 Monaco Grand Prix and 24 Hours of Le Mans).

Next season, McLaren will withdraw from Formula E, but will remain involved in Formula 1 and IndyCar, before its expected return to the WEC in 2027.