McLaren makes key move by bringing in experienced team principal

While McLaren is ending its own team in Formula E, this does not mean that the electric class is completely out of sight. CEO Zak Brown is actually planning to bring one of Formula E's most successful team principals to McLaren.

F1 journalist Joe Saward reported this week that James Barclay is essentially coming to McLaren, a report that GPblog has heard is indeed correct. This site understands that the Briton will head McLaren's World Endurance Championship project. Starting in 2027, McLaren will be active in endurance racing with its own WEC team.

Barclay, an experienced name in motorsport

In Formula E, Barclay is one of the most respected team principals. He began at Jaguar in 2015 as Team Director, at a time when the iconic brand joined Formula E. Since 2021, he has been Managing Director of JLR Motorsport and team principal of Jaguar. Earlier this year, he announced he would leave the team after the current season for a new adventure, which is at McLaren in WEC.

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McLaren's entry into the WEC comes at the expense of the adventure in Formula E, where McLaren were active for four seasons. As McLaren Racing reported last Friday, after an evaluation, it was decided to say goodbye to that class and fully focus on Formula 1, IndyCar, and WEC. McLaren will still complete the current season.

McLaren Racing hopes to find a new owner for the Formula E team.

This article was written in collaboration with Olly Darcy