New MSO special marks 1,000-race F1 milestone

1000GP Artura debuts at Monaco; just 10 will be sold

Had it come a few years ago, it’s hard to imagine McLaren shouting too loudly about its one-thousandth grand prix start. When the F1 outfit was really in the doldrums, the last thing on anybody’s mind would have been celebration - not matter how significant the milestone. But with victories and championships having recently returned to Woking (if not enjoying quite the same sort of season this year), the timing looks much rosier...

McLaren will enter its thousandth grand prix this weekend, just the second time a team has reached that marker after Ferrari, and at Monaco too, fittingly enough. This Artura marks the milestone, and the 10 Constructors’ titles - with more than 200 wins - it has attained in that time.

It’s called the 1000GP (names do rather get to the point at McLaren), with a livery inspired by the design of the MCL40s that Lando and Oscar will drive this weekend. McLaren says the black and orange ‘reflects the perseverance of a team that met challenges head-on, strengthened through adversity’; a sentiment which could also describe the people who worked on the Artura, given the travails it faced at launch.

Anyway, 1000GP spec sees the unique orange graphic applied to the bonnet, lower body sides and wing mirrors; there’s Papaya pinstriping aplenty and a plaque as well, ticking the McLaren special edition boxes. Looks decent enough, right? And it's nice to see MSO with something to shout about, after a period seemingly spent on the sidelines.

McLaren Group Holdings Chief Exec Nick Collins said: “Racing and road cars have always been shaped by the same mindset at McLaren, and the McLaren Artura 1000GP by MSO celebrates that shared foundation. It reflects the environment Bruce created - an environment built on collective ambition, engineering excellence and a unified approach to progress. Through this shared purpose, our teams continue to craft vehicles that carry his spirit forward. The McLaren Artura 1000GP by MSO is a testament to that legacy and offers our clients a meaningful connection to the MCL40 in a milestone moment.”

So if the 10 cars aren’t spoken for by the end of Monaco weekend, we’ll eat our McLaren Orange hat. And if you’re content with just a plain old Artura, they’re now from less than £130,000. Alternatively, if you'd prefer something McLaren-based that's entirely free to click on, and on the irreverent end of the F1 scale, the manufacturer today shared a video of Lando Norris' first-ever lap of the Nurburgring. Enjoy.