McLaren’s special livery for Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri at the 2024 Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix in Monte Carlo (Photo by McLaren F1 | Twitter)
Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri will be running on the famed city streets of Monte Carlo with the MCL38 adorned in the Ayrton Senna-inspired special livery and team kit tribute for the 2024 Monaco Grand Prix.
Following Sebastian Vettel’s tribute to Ayrton Senna with a pre-race show run in Senna’s 1993 car ahead of the Imola Grand Prix, the iconic yellow, green and blue colors are returning. For McLaren, the Monte Carlo circuit was selected for its association with the late Senna, who won six races on the city’s streets, including five consecutive wins from 1989 to 1993.
The livery, a collaboration with Senna Global and McLaren’s partner OKX, will commemorate the legacy left by the three-time world champion after his tragic passing at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix.
Instead of decorating the MCL38 with the famed white and red livery, the Woking-based outfit introduced the colors of the Brazilian national flag and Senna’s prominent helmet design.
McLaren’s special livery showcases the Brazil national flag’s colors and Senna’s famous helmet design. (Photo by McLaren F1 | Twitter)
“The team is proud to recognize and celebrate the extraordinary life and racing legacy of Ayrton Senna through this McLaren livery,” said McLaren CEO Zak Brown to Formula 1.
“Senna remains revered and respected as Formula 1’s greatest icon, and McLaren’s most decorated driver. His impact on McLaren is enormous, not only through his racing record but also presence within the team, and now his legacy, so it’s an honor to race for him at his most successful circuit in his green, yellow and blue colors.
“With it being the 30th anniversary of his passing, the team are choosing to recognize and celebrate his life at one of his favorite and most successful places to race, Monaco. We look forward to racing in this vibrant and beautiful livery this weekend.”
The nose and front wing of the one-off MCL38 in yellow and a dash of blue (Photo by McLaren F1 | Twitter)
Bianca Senna, niece of Senna, of Senna Global said, “It’s an honor to recognize Ayrton through these liveries in collaboration with both McLaren Racing and McLaren Automotive. It’s a fantastic way to celebrate his life and legacy through his iconic colors on both cars. McLaren meant a lot to him, and together they achieved a lot of success, much of which he is still remembered for today by so many.
“It will be special to see it race the streets of Monaco, a circuit which gave him so much joy and many triumphs.”
Aside from this year, this is the third time McLaren has wrapped their contenders in special liveries during the Monaco Grand Prix. In 2021, they welcomed partner Gulf Oil back to F1 with their blue and orange colors. To commemorate their 60th anniversary and triumphs in three of the most renowned racing events—the Monaco Grand Prix, the Indianapolis 500 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans—the MCL60 was graced with a one-off ‘Triple Crown’ papaya, white and black livery in 2023.
Senna had raced for McLaren between 1988 and 1993, bagging three World Drivers’ Championships—and out of the 41 races he had won, 35 were with McLaren. Having won all three of his world championships—1988, 1990, and 1991—with McLaren, he is the team’s most successful driver to date.
The Monaco Grand Prix will air live on ESPN at 9:00 AM EST on Sunday, May 26th.
