The battle to be crowned McLaren’s greatest former driver heats up this week as we move into the quarter-final stage.
In the lead-up to our 1,000th Grand Prix, we’re looking to crown the most iconic and legendary driver in McLaren Racing history. A total of 50 drivers have started a Formula 1 race for McLaren, with 22 taking victory. From that list, we selected a top 16, seeded by number of wins. Our 2026 pairing, Lando and Oscar, are excluded, as this vote is all about celebrating those who have previously raced in McLaren colours.
Voting began at the start of May with the Round of 16, and eight drivers successfully won their individual ties to progress to the quarter-finals.
After eight hotly contested match-ups, Ayrton Senna, Niki Lauda, Lewis Hamilton, Kimi Räikkönen, Mika Häkkinen, Fernando Alonso, James Hunt, and Alain Prost advanced, knocking out some big names, including Jenson Button, David Coulthard, and Emerson Fittipaldi.
Voting for the quarter-finals is now open and will close on 29 May. Pick your favourites from each of the four ties. For more on each driver, scroll down past the match-ups to dive into the details of their McLaren careers.
Happy voting, Papaya Family!