McLaren ups Arrow SP IndyCar team stake
McLaren has taken its next big step on its IndyCar journey and its full-time return to America’s premier single-seater series, by taking a majority stake in the Arrow McLaren SP team. Buying a 75 per cent share, McLaren intends to build upon the work it’s been doing with the team over the course of the last year.
McLaren first announced it would be collaborating with Schmidt Peterson Motorsports on a consistent series presence from the 2020 IndyCar season in August 2019. Now, following the Music City GP in Nashville, it’s cemented that presence. Thus far, not much of a shake-up to the management of the team is expected, with existing high-ups remaining in the five-person board. Three McLaren Racing appointees will join team founder Sam Schmidt and long-time partner Ric Peterson. McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown will chair the new team, while existing president Taylor Kiel will stay on.
On top of a decades-long history of racing experience and F1-tier brand clout, McLaren brings with it headline sponsor appeal and contacts. The move now sees McLaren Racing spanning four fully-fledged teams in four different disciplines.
“Today’s announcement is a strong signal of our long-term commitment to IndyCar as both a racing series and a marketing platform for McLaren Racing and our sponsor partners,” Zak Brown said.
“I want to pay tribute to Sam Schmidt and Ric Peterson who, together with the commitment and support of Arrow Electronics, have built a formidable team for us to keep growing and fulfil our common ambition of consistently challenging for wins, Indy 500s and series titles. Key to this is the continued leadership of Taylor Kiel as president of the team, who has been instrumental to the progress of the partnership so far.
“McLaren Racing believes IndyCar will continue to build our brand in North America, serve our expanding US fan and partner base across our racing portfolio and drive long-term value. The racing is second-to-none, with world-class competitors in both drivers and teams and a passionate, highly engaged fanbase.”
Indy 500 image courtesy of Motorsport Images.
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