McLaren vs Ferrari

Lore & Background

The McLaren MCL39 successfully defended the World Constructors' Championship title and won the World Drivers' Championship with Lando Norris, who became the first McLaren champion since Lewis Hamilton in 2008. The car was consistently the fastest in the field, securing the WCC at the 2025 Singapore Grand Prix and the WDC at the 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. It was the first McLaren since the MP4/13 of 1998 to win both titles in the same season.

In Their Own Story

The engine note changed first—a deep, guttural roar echoing off the tunnel walls at Monaco. It was Ferrari, red as blood, fighting for position against the silver arrow of McLaren. Inside the cockpit, the air was thick with the smell of burnt rubber and high-octane fuel. The crowd held its breath as the two cars approached the final chicane side-by-side, neither willing to yield an inch. In that split second, history wasn't just being watched; it was being forged in the friction of tires and the sheer will of men who refused to let their teams lose.

Reader's Guide

The MCL39 won fourteen Grands Prix in 2025, each driver winning seven. It scored thirteen pole positions, set twelve fastest laps, and finished on the podium a record total of thirty-four times. The car, in the hands of Norris, also set the Formula One record for fastest race lap by average speed at the Italian Grand Prix.

Did You Know?

• The MCL39 was the first McLaren car that lead designer Rob Marshall oversaw from its beginning.
• McLaren used a special chrome livery for the British Grand Prix, inspired by those used from 2006–2014.
• The car's season livery was substantially identical to that of the MCL38.
• Norris secured the WDC at the 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.