On 22 May 1966, we made our Formula 1 debut at the Monaco Grand Prix. The white M2B, with a dark green central stripe, featured an aerospace-inspired construction that had never been seen in F1 before. It caused a stir among motorsport enthusiasts almost immediately.

A planned appearance in the Hollywood film Grand Prix had led to the chic, albeit unusual, paint job, while former Concorde engineer Robin Herd was credited with the car’s innovative design. Not only did the car look great, it was impeccably made. With racing legend Bruce McLaren, then the sport’s youngest race winner, behind the wheel, hopes were high for the newcomer.

However, while everything appeared calm on the surface, McLaren’s Monaco debut – now recognised as a pivotal moment within F1 history – almost didn’t happen.

Just weeks earlier, the car’s modified Ford engine had struggled in testing. Both heavier and less powerful than anticipated, the custom engine was far from race-ready. The team scrambled to make adjustments and even considered withdrawing from Monaco entirely. Ultimately, the decision was made to forge ahead.

That refusal to give up established a mindset that has since come to define us: McLaren never quits.

Though the car was well received by fans and enthusiasts, McLaren’s debut Grand Prix was far from a resounding success. An oil leak forced the M2B into retirement on the 10th lap, and when Bruce stepped out of the car, he was covered in hot oil. There were no points and no silverware, but there was a commitment to keep going.

That commitment allowed us to claim our first F1 Grand Prix podium just two years later, when Denny Hulme took second at the 1968 Spanish Grand Prix. Fending off pressure on the tight, unforgiving curves of Jarama, Hulme proved McLaren could compete with the biggest names in F1. The following month, Bruce became the first McLaren driver to stand on the top step, winning the 1968 Belgian Grand Prix at one of Europe’s fastest tracks, Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps.

Suddenly, McLaren wasn’t just a newcomer to watch with interest, we were a serious threat to the teams that had previously dominated the sport.

Since that 1968 win, McLaren has outlasted over 100 F1 rivals, created legends of the sport, and inspired generations of racing fans. Among our 203 Grand Prix wins and 23 World Championships are many of the sport’s most iconic moments – triumphs that have defied belief, dominance that has set new standards, and comebacks that have stunned the doubters.

Among them, Ayrton Senna’s 1991 victory in Brazil, a win that encapsulates the dogged persistence that connects so many who have represented McLaren.

Battling pouring rain at Interlagos, Ayrton finally clinched the home win he had dreamt of on his eighth attempt, despite a failing gearbox that left him stuck in sixth gear for the final laps. The same issue had forced Williams’ Nigel Mansel out on Lap 61, but Ayrton clung on, wrestling the MP4/6 around corners, on the edge of stalling. Suffering from severe muscle cramps, the victorious Ayrton was lifted from the car, exhausted and feverish, but to raucous applause from the home crowd.

Twenty years later, Jenson Button showcased that same relentless spirit when he claimed first place at the 2011 Canadian Grand Prix, one of the longest and most chaotic F1 races in history. Starting from seventh, Jenson battled through a minefield of rain-affected incidents, recovered from multiple collisions, and overcame a drive-through penalty to seize the win. Remarkably, by Lap 40 of 70, he had fallen to last place and was over 50 seconds behind race leader Sebastian Vettel. Jenson’s unlikely triumph came down to flawless strategy and unwavering perseverance.

That unwavering determination has coursed through so many across our history, and remains just as true of those who represent the team today. You see it in the everyday: Oscar’s gritty performance at his home Grand Prix in 2025, hauling his car from the grass when all seemed lost and fighting back to ninth - and in the bigger picture: Lando’s long journey to become the sport’s 35th World Champion. Across 109 F1 races without a win, during an up-and-down period for McLaren, Lando’s belief in himself and the team never wavered. That perseverance finally paid off at the 2024 Miami Grand Prix, and we haven’t looked back since.

These achievements, hard fought and never guaranteed, were made possible by the combined commitment of drivers on the track, mechanics in the garage, management on the pit wall, and engineers at the McLaren Technology Centre. All united by the racing mindset: the thrill of the chase and the belief that no setback is final.

Now, almost 60 years after that first Grand Prix, we are on the verge of a milestone that was unimaginable in those early days. This weekend, the season-opening Grand Prix in Australia will mark our 995th F1 Grand Prix entry. Five races later, we will become only the second F1 team in history to start 1,000 Grands Prix.

Approaching such a momentous milestone, it would be easy to convince ourselves that the achievement was inevitable. To reflect on our heritage and assume there was never any other possible outcome. But we know that’s not true.

Beyond Championship victories and race wins, our history is filled with many triumphs – from designing F1’s first entirely carbon-fibre chassis to a dominant 1988 season that delivered 15 wins from 16 races, and setting the world record for the fastest pit stop. But, much like that debut Grand Prix, the journey has not been a perfectly smooth one. There have been seasons that fell short of our standards, costly mistakes, and moments where our future was called into question.

Among them were a 2015 season that brought 12 retirements and no podium finishes, the ill-fated MP4-18 project of 2003, and, most poignantly of all, the tragic and untimely loss of our founder, Bruce McLaren. Each of these moments tested us. Each made us stronger.

They are as much a part of our story as our 23 World Championships. Last season’s success was born from the disappointment of 2015 - just as Lewis Hamilton’s MP4-23 was shaped by the lessons of the MP4-18, and our first F1 title in 1984 was driven by the team’s determination to race on in honour of Bruce.

Overcoming these setbacks and reaching the milestone of 1,000 Grand Prix entries has required immense hard work, resilience, and fortitude from everyone who has been a part of this team.

As we approach this landmark, we will share the stories behind not only our greatest triumphs, but also the challenges, comebacks, and breakthroughs that shaped us - the moments our team could have thrown in the towel, but chose to push ahead instead.

Longevity in F1 is not luck, or accident. In a relentlessly evolving sport, it demands resilience, reinvention and grit. We hope to paint an honest picture of the road we’ve travelled over the past six decades, and we welcome you to join us on the journey.

From a car that almost didn’t make the grid, to a team preparing for its 1,000th start, one belief has remained constant.

McLaren never quits.