McLaren Speeding Toward Profitability

On pace toward profitability, McLaren Racing is making major investments in IndyCar.

Prior to Sunday’s Indianapolis 500, the company announced it will build a $25 million IndyCar facility in Indiana. The 97,000-square-foot facility will become operational over the next two years. 

• McLaren reentered IndyCar in 2020 after a 40-year absence.
• The brand will have three entrants in the IndyCar series next year.

“We want to have a bigger North American platform than our competitors in Formula 1,” McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown told Front Office Sports.

Profitable Pace

While McLaren Racing currently operates at a loss, Brown sees that changing soon.

“Now that Liberty [Media] is putting a cost cap in place [on Formula 1], we see profitability is right around the corner.”

F1 parent Liberty Media introduced a spending limit of $145 million for each team last year, which dropped to $140 million this year and will be $135 million in 2023.

“Without a cost cap in place, the sport was about who could afford to lose the most,” said Brown, adding that many car companies saw racing expenses “as great advertising dollars.”