“McLaren, The Americas” will mark the brand’s 60th anniversary with a spectacular display of supercars, heritage race cars and a star-studded line-up of drivers, both past and present – all capped off with the unveiling of a very special McLaren supercar, November 10 – 12 at Velocity Invitational. Velocity Invitational, held at the Sonoma Raceway in Northern California, will provide the stunning backdrop to help wrap up a year of celebrations marking the 60th anniversary of McLaren, which was founded in England by Bruce McLaren on September 2nd, 1963.
From Elvis to Senna
McLaren Automotive, which sold its first car in the Americas in 2011, will bring a full spectrum of the brand’s iconic supercars and hypercars together for the weekend, including the McLaren P1TM, Senna, Elva and examples of the extreme performance LT models. Also making an appearance will be the very first McLaren customer race car ever built – the M1A Elva – which was also driven by Elvis Presley in the 1966 movie Spinout.
One of the highlights of the weekend’s festivities will be the unveiling of a truly special McLaren supercar. Details are still under wraps, but the planned reveal will involve both superstar drivers and a car that will take fans’ breath away.
Heritage display
McLaren Racing will also assemble the largest collection of heritage cars it has ever run in the event, many of which are rarely seen in North America. These include Niki Lauda’s 1984 World Championship winning MP4/2A-1 and Lewis Hamilton’s MP4/23A-05, which he drove to win his first World Championship in 2008. Also making an appearance will be the MP4/6-10 that Ayrton Senna piloted to his third and final World Championship.
Celebrity appearances
On hand to meet with fans and hit the track throughout the weekend will be current McLaren Formula 1 driver, Lando Norris, along with McLaren Racing CEO, Zak Brown, who will also be joined by Pato O’Ward, Alexander Rossi, David Malukas and Tony Kanaan from the Arrow McLaren IndyCar Team. Former McLaren Formula 1 driver, Stefan Johansson and Le Mans legend, Derek Bell, also plan to join the celebrations alongside Bruce McLaren’s daughter, Amanda McLaren.
“Velocity Invitational will give McLaren fans and racing enthusiasts the chance to get close to a host of road and racing cars that encapsulate just what this iconic brand is all about. I’m sure that Bruce McLaren would be proud to see what has been achieved by both the race and road car divisions of the dream that he established back in the UK just 60 years ago. From World Championship winning Formula 1 cars, to Can Am and Indy winners, and in recent history some road cars that embody the performance, innovation and excellence that McLaren stands for—it should be a spectacular weekend.” Nicolas Brown, President, McLaren, The Americas
All photos © 2023 McLaren Automotive
