McLaren in recent months has been in the headlines for offloading assets, but on Sunday the supercar manufacturer and race team announced it is buying one, specifically the Arrow McLaren SP IndyCar team.
McLaren has agreed to acquire 75% of the team in a deal expected to close by the end of 2021, with current owners Sam Schmidt and Ric Peterson to remain as board members. Current chief Taylor Kiel will also remain in charge of the team. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
“Today’s announcement is a strong signal of our long-term commitment to IndyCar as both a racing series and a marketing platform for McLaren Racing and our sponsor partners," Zak Brown, CEO of McLaren's racing operations, said in a statement.
Beyond IndyCar and McLaren's traditional F1 haunt, the company is also expanding into Extreme E next year.
Arrow McLaren SP was founded in 2001 as Sam Schmidt Motorsports and has experienced several ownership changes over the years. McLaren partnered with the team in 2019 as part of a full-time return to IndyCar for the first time in four decades, and now it's taking over as majority owner.
The team currently competes in the 2021 IndyCar season with Chevrolet engines and counts Patricio O'Ward, Felix Rosenqvist and Juan Pablo Montoya as drivers. O'Ward is currently ranked third in the drivers' standings.
Prior to McLaren joining, the team ran one of the most successful Indy Lights programs in recent times, securing seven drivers’ championships, while in IndyCar it has claimed 13 pole positions and 27 podiums including nine wins, two as Arrow McLaren SP.
The news comes just days after McLaren announced it is selling its technology business McLaren Applied. McLaren in the past year has also shed 25% of its workforce, sold a third of its Formula One team, and sold its famous Woking, U.K., headquarters in a lease-back deal.
