McLaren will pay tribute to Formula One legend Ayrton Senna with a unique racing livery for the Monaco Grand Prix – along with a one-off Senna supercar.
Ayrton Senna was the British team’s most successful driver, claiming 35 of his 41 Grand Prix victories in a McLaren. Tragically, he was killed 30 years ago in 1994, when his car struck a concrete barrier at the Imola circuit in Italy.
Finished in the vivid yellow, green and blue colours of Senna’s crash helmet – and his native Brazilian flag – the MCL38 F1 cars will race at Monaco this Sunday, driven by Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. The matching McLaren Senna will also be on show in Monaco throughout the weekend.
McLaren in Monaco
One of the greatest drivers of all time, the memory of Ayrton Senna still looms large at McLaren. Several of his F1 cars, including the MP4/4 he raced at Monaco in 1988, have been lovingly restored at the team’s heritage workshop in Woking – where many of the trophies he won are also proudly on display.
The distinctive ‘Senna Sempre’ livery has no effect on the MCL38’s performance, and McLaren will doubtless hope for a repeat of its Miami Grand Prix success, where Lando Norris claimed his first F1 win.
The McLaren Racing team will wear a new kit in matching colours, too. You can watch the race at 14:00 (UK time) on Sunday 26 May.
An Ultimate Series supercar
This isn’t the first time McLaren has been inspired by Ayrton Senna, of course. In 2018, the company named a car after the late F1 driver: the McLaren Senna – part of the ‘Ultimate Series’ of supercars that also includes the P1, Speedtail, Elva and Solus GT.
Powered by a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8, the Senna memorably boasted 800hp, 800Nm of torque (590lb ft) and 800kg of downforce (at 155mph). With a kerb weight of just 1,198kg – making it the lightest McLaren since the original F1 – it could hit 62mph in 2.8 seconds and reach 211mph.
Pulling the covers off the car pictured here, Bruno Senna (racing driver, McLaren ambassador and Ayrton’s nephew) said: “I first saw it as a clay model. They told me this was supposed to be the most extreme road-legal McLaren ever built. Like Ayrton, it was totally dedicated and uncompromising. I said: ‘Why don’t we call it the Senna?’”.
Modified by MSO
The task of customising the Senna was taken on by Woking’s in-house McLaren Special Operations (MSO) division. Its carbon fibre bodywork was painted entirely by hand, including a newly developed ‘wash’ technique, particularly visible on the car’s nose, that allows paints to blend without creating additional colours.
Each of the flanks features a distinct image of Ayrton Senna in a dot matrix style, with his ‘double S’ logo on the front clamshell and a curvaceous ‘Senna’ script on the enormous rear wing.
Inside, the seats are trimmed in vibrant yellow Alcantara with green perforations. A quote from Ayrton – also found inside the cockpit of the F1 car – is stitched into the door panel: ‘I have no idols. I admire work, dedication and competence’.
‘Celebrating Ayrton Senna’
Nobody could call the Senna beautiful, but the MSO makeover is certain to turn heads – even in supercar-saturated Monaco. “We seen examples of the McLaren Senna in Brazilian colours before,” said Bruno Senna, “but this car is unique. It’s been a long time in the making.”
Speaking about the project, McLaren CEO Michael Leiters added: “Ayrton Senna was born to race, and his passion for performance and perfection lives on at McLaren. The McLaren Senna bears his name and embodies his spirit – it is the ultimate road-going McLaren for focused track performance, and this masterfully detailed inspiration captures Ayrton’s infectious energy.”
Zak Brown, CEO of McLaren Racing, also commented: “The team is proud to recognise and celebrate the extraordinary life and racing legacy of Ayrton Senna through this McLaren livery. Senna remains revered and respected as Formula 1’s greatest icon, and McLaren’s most decorated driver.”
Memories of a McLaren
Only 500 examples of the car were made, plus a smaller number of track-only GTR and LM models. This particular car is a pre-production prototype and part of McLaren’s extensive heritage collection. It was also present at the media launch in Portugal.
Motoring Research’s Richard Aucock recalls that trip to Estoril well, describing it at the time as ‘the best car I’ve ever driven’. Let’s conclude with a snippet from his 2018 review:
‘Remember Senna at Donington in 1993, when he tore through the field on the first lap, then ran rings around them for the rest of the race? I was there. I went to school the next day with a similar feeling. Senna’s dominance that day was like my experience of the Senna. Does it live up to the name? Without doubt. This McLaren is Senna.’
Tim Pitt writes for Motoring Research