Author Archives: PressBox

McLaren would consider building its own F1 power unit only if new engine rules and costs made it financially and technically viable, CEO Zak Brown told media at the Indy 500, including the Sports Business Journal. He said “the numbers have to add up,” and stressed the plan was conditional, not imminent.

The team buys power units from Mercedes’ High Performance Powertrains (HPPT) and is contracted with Mercedes through at least 2030. McLaren has used customer engines for much of its modern history, including spells with Renault and Honda. Reports differ on when the McLaren–Mercedes customer tie began (either 1955 or 1995), but all accounts say it ended in 2014 and resumed in 2021.

McLaren’s recent on-track success — winning the 2024 constructors’ title and the 2025 drivers’ and constructors’ crowns — gives the team commercial and technical leverage, and some coverage says it has outperformed the Mercedes works team since 2024.

Brown’s comments came amid debate over the incoming 2026 power-unit rules. Regulators increased the hybrid-electric contribution from 20% to 50% in 2026, a change that drew driver criticism. A proposed 2027 change would shift to a 60-40 combustion-to-electric split and would need backing from at least four of the six manufacturers on the Power Unit Advisory Committee. FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has promoted replacing the current V6 with a V8 around 2030-31.

Brown defended the current on-track product, citing races such as Miami with multiple leaders and saying drivers and rule‑makers will adapt. Any decision by McLaren to build its own engines will depend on how the sport’s technical and commercial environment evolves.

The $1.25 million sale of Gilles Villeneuve’s helmet worn at the 1982 San Marino Grand Prix set a world record for a racing helmet at auction, the Hall of Fame Collection said. CEO Darren Jack confirmed the result; the buyer was not disclosed.

The helmet is a 1982 Ferrari GPA model Villeneuve wore at Imola during his final F1 season and had been in a private collection for nearly 30 years. Predominantly red with black side stripes and a stylized red “V” on the back, the piece was authenticated by era-specific features and provenance. The auction house estimated that about five or fewer race-worn Villeneuve helmets survive; drivers’ practice of reusing helmets in that era has increased provenance and collector interest.

The helmet was not the one Villeneuve wore two weeks later when he was killed during qualifying at the Belgian Grand Prix. The $1.25 million price eclipsed the prior record for a Formula 1 helmet — Ayrton Senna’s 1992 Belgian Grand Prix helmet, which sold for £720,000 — and left Lewis Hamilton’s 2023 helmet (about $387,000) ranked third. Dealers and collectors said a combination of rarity, driver provenance and historic significance is driving rising investor appetite for top motorsport memorabilia.

The Hamilton family produced a rare double podium on the same day, pairing Lewis Hamilton’s second place at the Canadian Grand Prix with Nicolas Hamilton’s Jack Sears Trophy victory at Snetterton, a coincidence that organizers and family members framed as a moment for visibility and inclusivity in motorsport. Nicolas, who lives with cerebral palsy and became the first disabled driver to compete in the BTCC when he debuted in 2015, stood on a touring-car podium for the first time in his eighth BTCC season, and commentators described the result as both a personal breakthrough and a symbolic advance for drivers with disabilities. Lewis used his post-race platform to praise his brother and to call out barriers in racing, saying the sport is “not built to be inclusive,” posting an emotional Instagram tribute in which he said, “I could not be more proud of my brother Nicolas Hamilton,” and noting he called Nicolas as soon as his own race ended; Nicolas publicly replied, “Love you bro.”

Lewis finished second at the Canadian Grand Prix at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, a Ferrari-best runner-up result and his second podium of the 2026 season for Ferrari after Shanghai in March. He credited his mother Carmen’s presence at the race as a “lucky omen,” saying she would have to come to every race, and praised the SF-26’s balance and driveability, calling the weekend his “best experience” in a race car in some time. Lewis had battled Max Verstappen for second during the race and will move on to the Monaco Grand Prix for round seven of the 2026 season.

Nicolas’s Jack Sears Trophy win was the first silverware of his touring-car career. Reports differ on his entry details, with some accounts saying he drove the #28 Team VERTU Hyundai i30 Fastback N and others saying he raced for EXCELR8 Motorsport. At Snetterton he finished 17th in the opener and recorded back-to-back 16th-place finishes before claiming the Jack Sears Trophy, and he said, “I honestly cannot believe what has happened this weekend.” Nicolas is targeting the next BTCC event at Oulton Park.