This week, the NEOM McLaren Formula E Team will be heading to Great Britain for the final two rounds of Season 11.

Sam, Taylor and Team Principal Ian James are here to help us prepare for the event. As well as hearing from the team, we’ll also be explaining some key FE terminology, recapping the season so far, and catching up with a team member on their priorities this weekend.

Key info

“I’m really looking forward to racing in London this weekend. It’s the first time I’ll get to race in front of my home crowd in Formula E, and with the fight for second in the Drivers’ Championship being so close, I hope we can put on a good show and finish off this season on a high.” 

“Everything comes down to London. Thanks to the commitment and perseverance of everyone in the team, we’re in a decent position in the Teams’ Championship  and the Drivers’ Championship with Taylor, with lots of points still up for grabs.  

“London is always a very special race for me, and it will mean a lot to be surrounded by our home fans as we enter our final weekend as NEOM McLaren.” 

“This week is the London E-Prix – McLaren Racing’s final race in the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship.   

“We enter this weekend with the opportunity to finish strongly in both the Teams’ Championship and the Drivers’ Championship, and the team is ready to give it our all. 

“This weekend, we will run the cars in a new striking blue livery, created in collaboration with Oxagon, one of NEOM’s key regions. The car looks fantastic, and I can’t wait to see it under the lights in London’s ExCeL Centre. 

“We have two more chances to score solid points, and fight for position in the Championships. Bring it on.” 

The season so far

Two rounds remain and there’s everything to play for in the Teams’ Championship, as we sit in fourth place, 22 points off third. Meanwhile, Taylor is within touching distance of second place in the Drivers' Championship, just 13 points off. 

Sam and Taylor endured a mixed weekend last time out, as Taylor extended his run of consecutive points finishes to five, finishing fourth and sixth. Sam narrowly missed out on the points on Saturday, finishing 11th, before retiring from the race on Sunday, as he was unfortunately caught up in a collision.

FEducation: Aerodynamics in Formula E

Our aim is to ensure everyone is as equipped as possible to follow Season 11, so whether you’re new to following Formula E or a long-time fan, we’ll be explaining some of the series’ most complicated terminology, jargon, acronyms, and technical terms to aid your understanding. This week, it’s aerodynamics in Formula E.

Aerodynamics relates to how air flows over the car. The two key terms people refer to when talking about aerodynamics are downforce and drag. Downforce pulls the car down onto the track, increasing grip and speed through corners, while drag is the air pushing against the car, slowing it down. 

Downforce is crucial for overtaking in modern Formula 1. The circuits typically feature wide, sweeping corners and long straights, with cars often separated by large gaps. To maintain speed through high-speed corners and close the gap to rivals, teams focus on increasing downforce in their cars. 

Whereas in Formula E, we are primarily racing on tight and twisting street circuits, where cars are much more bunched up, meaning that downforce isn’t as important for overtaking. Downforce also results in more energy use, as the car must work harder against the drag. So instead of maximising downforce, the focus is on efficiency and speed in tight spaces.  

What to watch out for in London 

Each weekend, we’ll catch up with a different member of the NEOM McLaren Formula E Team and ask them what their priorities are for the upcoming E-Prix. This weekend, we’ve spoken with Communications and Social Media Executive Holly Sennett. 

As a Communications and Social Media Executive for NEOM McLaren, my role is often very varied. On a day-to-day basis I support the team with the production of media materials, organising driver commitments and leading on our fan engagement strategy. No two days are ever the same, and I often have to be adaptable to quickly changing situations and schedules.  

Usually, when attending a race event, I’m responsible for managing our drivers' media commitments, liaising with our engineers on their schedule, and ensuring that they’re properly briefed beforehand. Essentially, anything that the media or drivers require over a race weekend comes through the communications team. 

In London, my focus will be on fan engagement, as we look to create an exciting and varied programme that shows our appreciation to all the papaya fans who have supported us this season. Additionally, we’ll have our special NEOM Oxagon livery for both races in London this year. It will be a special moment for the team when it finally goes out on track for the first time in FP1.  

With this weekend being a home race for the team and both our drivers, it will be incredibly busy, meaning that there is very little spare time in our schedule. There is always a balancing act to make sure that Sam and Taylor have enough capacity to fulfil all their commitments to engineering, Formula E, media and fans. Preparation for this race started a couple of months ago, as we knew from previous seasons that it would be a busy one!    

However much we try to prepare for every scenario, there will likely be last-minute changes over the race weekend that require plans to change and for us to be adaptable. As a team, we’re very good at working together to overcome these challenges and make the best of every situation.  

Don’t miss out on any of the action and follow the team on X, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.