Biography

• Rising up the junior racing ranks

  A gifted karter, Lando remains the youngest driver ever to set a pole position at a national meeting. In 2012, he became Formula Kart Stars champion and runner-up in the MSA Super One British Championship.

  A year later, he won titles in the CIK-FIA KFJ European, CIK-FIA KFJ Super Cup, WSK Euro Series KFJ, CIK-FIA International Super Cup and World Karting Championship. In addition, he became WSK Masters Series vice-champion. He made history by becoming the youngest karting world championship winner, taking the CIK-FIA KF World Championship title at 14, an accolade previously held by Lewis Hamilton.

  His graduation to single-seaters only underlined that initial promise. In 2016, he won a slew of single-seater championships – Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup, Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup and the Toyota Racing Series Championship in New Zealand.

• Starting his McLaren journey

  He crowned his successful 2016 season by signing with McLaren as a Test and Simulator Driver after winning the 2016 McLaren Autosport BRDC Award. Alongside this role, Lando stepped up to the European Formula 3 Championship and won it at the first attempt with nine victories and a further 11 podiums from 30 races.

  Following his success in F3, Lando was promoted to Test and Reserve Driver in 2018 and made his debut in F2 with Carlin Racing. It was to be a busy and productive year for the teenager. He began it by contesting the Daytona 24 Hours with United Autosports, gaining valuable experience in a line-up that included Fernando Alonso.

• The final steps

  His F2 season got off to a superb start when he won the opening feature race in Bahrain, and after that, he was a regular frontrunner, fighting for the title with George Russell and Alex Albon.

  His progression towards an F1 seat continued when he enjoyed productive FP1 outings in Belgium and Italy, and in September, it was announced that he would partner Carlos Sainz at McLaren in 2018. He then finished a remarkable year in Abu Dhabi by securing the runner-up spot in F2, shortly after his 19th birthday.

• Formula 1’s newest star

  Still only 19 when he made his debut, Lando enjoyed a remarkable rookie campaign in F1, finishing in the points 11 times and beating his more experienced teammate Carlos Sainz in their head-to-head Qualifying battle.

  He grew in stature during his sophomore campaign, clinching a maiden podium in the opening round at Austria. He'd only finish outside the points four times that season as he became a regular feature in the top 10 and helped the team to their highest finish in the Constructors' Championship since 2012.

  His stock continued to rise in 2021 as he took four more podiums and heartbreakingly missed out on a first win at the Russian Grand Prix, firmly establishing himself as an F1 frontrunner.

  Lando was amongst the quickest to adapt following an overhaul to the regulations and a new generation of car in 2022. He repeatedly exploited the MCL36's full potential and even notched an unexpected sixth F1 podium at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, emerging as the frontrunner in a highly competitive midfield battle. He ended the season as the only driver outside the top three teams to take a podium and finished directly behind the six drivers from the top three teams, with seventh place in the Drivers' Championship.

• Becoming McLaren’s senior driver

  During a tough start to the 2023 season, Lando played a key role in managing expectations and maximising the ability of the MCL60 as the team worked on key upgrades for the car.

  Once those upgrades were installed, he never looked back. Lando cemented his place among F1’s elite by taking 193 points in 14 rounds, finishing as the second most consistent driver after World Champion Max Verstappen.

• Committing to McLaren

  Going into 2024, Lando had already seen enough to know that his future was with the team he’d dreamt of driving for since he was a little boy. Signing a multi-year contract extension in January 2024 before a wheel had even been turned in anger was seen as a huge show of faith, but his confidence was to be proven right as he and the team went up a level.

  After a strong start to the year, the installation of an upgrade ahead of the Miami Grand Prix saw us become one of the most competitive and consistent teams on the grid, culminating in an emotional maiden victory for Lando in the US. Lando produced three more wins throughout the season, most notably in the title-deciding season finale, where he led from Pole with nerves of steel to confirm McLaren as Constructors’ Champions for the first time in 26 years.

• Winning the World Championship

  Having broken through to become a Grand Prix-winner in 2024, Lando was eying a title challenge in 2025. Armed with a race-winning car from the first round, Lando established himself as a contender with victory in the Australia season-opener.

  McLaren emerged as the season’s dominant team, breaking away from the rest of the pack as the battle between Lando and Oscar ebbed and flowed. Lando delivered career-defining wins in Monaco and Silverstone, but Oscar was the Championship leader at the halfway stage, building up a 34-point buffer between Round 5 in Saudi Arabia and Round 15 in the Netherlands, before Lando began to eat into his advantage.

  This, in turn, played a crucial role in helping the team to retain its Constructors’ crown with six races to spare in Singapore – McLaren’s first back-to-back titles since the early 90s, when they clinched four in a row.

  As attention switched back to the Drivers’ Championship, wins for Lando in Mexico City and São Paulo completed his comeback as he leapfrogged Oscar in the standings and established a 24-point lead over his teammate, with three rounds to go. The British racer went into the penultimate round knowing that a victory would guarantee him the title. After finishing third in Abu Dhabi, Lando confirmed himself as Formula 1’s 35th Drivers’ World Champion, the 11th Briton and the first from McLaren for 17 years, our 13th overall. Winning by two points over Max Verstappen in second place, Lando ended the year with seven wins, 18 podiums, and seven Poles.