The McLaren young driver programme, formerly known as McLaren Driver Development Programme and McLaren Mercedes Young Driver Support Programme, is a program created by McLaren. It has been designed to offer year-by-year guidance, assistance and endorsement to help promising young racers – regardless of nationality – to climb the motorsport ladder.
The highlight of the programme is Lewis Hamilton, who is the part of the programme since his karting days and graduated to the F1 team and subsequently winning the driver championship in 2008.
Current drivers
| Driver | Years | Current Series | Titles |
|---|---|---|---|
 Nobuharu Matsushita
|
2015–17 | Formula 2 | All-Japan Formula Three Formula Challenge Japan |
 Lando Norris
|
2017 | Formula 3 Europe | Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 Formula Renault 2.0 NEC Toyota Racing Series MSA Formula |
 Nyck de Vries
|
2010–17 | Formula 2 | Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 Formula Renault 2.0 Alps |
Graduates to McLaren F1 Team
| Driver | Junior Team Experience | McLaren F1 Team | Other F1 Teams | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Years | Former Series | |||
| Lewis Hamilton
|
1998-2006 | Karting (1998-2001) Formula Renault 2.0 UK (2002-03) Formula 3 Euro Series (2004-05) GP2 Series (2006) |
2007-2012 | Mercedes AMG (2013-2017) |
 Kevin Magnussen
|
2010-2013 | German Formula Three (2010) British Formula Three (2011) Formula Renault 3.5 Series (2012-13) |
2014-2015 | Renault (2016) Haas (2017) |
 Stoffel Vandoorne
|
2013-2016 | Formula Renault 3.5 Series (2013) GP2 Series (2006-15) Super Formula (2016) |
2016-2017 | none |
- Championship titles highlighted in bold.
In 2016, Stoffel Vandoorne made his F1 debut with McLaren as a replacement for regular driver Fernando Alonso at the Bahrain Grand Prix after the Spaniard was ruled unfit to drive following a major accident in the previous round.[1]
Former drivers
| Driver | Years | Series competed |
|---|---|---|
| Wesley Graves[2]
|
1998 | Karting (1998) |
 Congfu Cheng
|
2003-2006 | Formula Renault 2.0 UK (2003-2006) |
| Giedo van der Garde
|
2006-2010 | Formula 3 Euro Series (2006) Formula Renault 3.5 Series (2007-2008) F1 Test Driver (2007-2008) GP2 Series (2009-2010) |
| Oliver Rowland
|
2007-2010 | Karting (2007-2009) Formula Renault UK Winter Series (2010) |
| Ben Barnicoat
|
2010-2015 | Karting (2010-2012) Protyre Formula Renault Autumn Cup (2013) Formula Renault 2.0 NEC (2014) BRDC Formula 4 Autumn Trophy (2015) Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 (2015) |
| Oliver Turvey
|
2010-2011 | GP2 Series (2010-2011) |
 Alexander Albon
|
2010 | Karting (2010) |
 Petri Suvanto[3]
|
2010 | Formula BMW Europe (2010) |
| Jack Harvey
|
2010 | Formula BMW Europe (2010) |
| Tom Blomqvist[4]
|
2012 | Formula 3 Euro Series (2012) German Formula Three (2012) European Formula 3 Championship (2012) |
- Championship titles highlighted in bold.
See also
References
- ^ "Alonso will not race in the Bahrain GP". motorsport.com. 31 March 2016.
- ^ "Mclaren Sign Kart Drivers". crash.net.
- ^ "McLaren tukee suomalaislupausta". sportti.com. 19 March 2010.
- ^ "Stig's son joins McLaren". The Telegraph. 26 Feb 2012.