McLaren Formula E team set to close without buyer

McLaren’s Formula E team is set to be closed down at the end of the current season as efforts to find a buyer for the outfit have proven unsuccessful, Autosport understands.

Following its decision to enter the World Endurance Championship with a Hypercar chassis for 2027, McLaren elected to withdraw from Formula E after three seasons in the all-electric championship and redirect its resources into its sportscar project.

As such, team principal Ian James had been looking to secure a buyer to preserve the team’s position in the championship, allowing it to remain as an outfit under the name of another brand.

Despite links to a potential buyout from other manufacturers looking to join Formula E, with Hyundai one of the brands rumoured to be interested, the team has been unable to find a buyer for the team.

It is understood that the team will close down in September following the end of the 2024-25 Formula E season.

This had been the second time that the team was up for sale; having initially started as Mercedes, the team sold its entry and team to McLaren – which relocated it from the Mercedes High Performance Powertrains facility in Brixworth to a unit at Bicester Heritage.

The team also pivoted from a manufacturer entity to a customer team for the first year of the Gen3 rules in 2022-23, taking on Nissan powertrains and continuing that relationship during its duration in the championship.

Following the inability to find a buyer, the team’s entry will return to Formula E Holdings.

This leaves drivers Sam Bird and Taylor Barnard looking for potential seats elsewhere on the grid following the demise of the McLaren team. Barnard has been a breakout star this season so far, and the British rookie is likely to be a target for those currently with available seats for next season – the last season in the Gen3 cycle.

Bird may also be an option for a team searching for experience; the Briton has raced in every Formula E season having started with Virgin Racing before moving to Jaguar. He has been with McLaren for the past two seasons, taking the team’s only win so far at Sao Paulo last year.