Arrow McLaren’s 2026 Racing Center Launch: Firing On All Cylinders

Welcome to the McLaren Racing Center

As we pulled up to the newly polished building, there was a sense of excitement to see what was waiting for us behind the doors. While we were admiring the building from the outside and preparing our content for the next 12 hours, a large blacked-out Tahoe pulled up and, as if on queue, out came a very important guest; Mr. Zak Brown. Zak exchanged pleasantries with us and headed inside to his team’s new home base.

Following the boss’s lead, we headed beyond the doors and were greeted with every race fan’s dream decor. Lining the walls and filling the lobby were three of McLaren’s most prized possessions: Pato O’Ward’s IndyCar, Oscar Piastri’s Formula 1 car and a highly coveted McLaren road car. The cars not only emulated the team’s pride in their on-track success, but they also serve as a reminder of what everyone in the factory is working towards day-after-day. Proudly displaying the cars along with the race suits of Christian Lundgaard, Pato O’Ward, Nolan Siegel, Oscar Piastri, and Lando Norris, McLaren has mastered the art of bridging their series together and making McLaren Racing one team rather than a fragmented brand.

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McLaren as a Racing Brand

After settling in, we had the opportunity to chat with Lauren Gaudion who is the Vice President of Marketing and Communications at Arrow McLaren. She shed light on what it takes to get the cars from the factory to the track and all the intricate details that need to be accounted for, not just for the drivers but also for the partners, sponsors and everyone involved. She touched on the fact that McLaren is actively working towards becoming a racing brand rather than a brand that races.

Lauren talked about the new partnership with PUMA and how they’re taking over the team kits and merchandise in a new multi-year deal. Deliberately, PUMA will be releasing merch and team kits that say, McLaren Racing, rather than Arrow McLaren IndyCar Team. In doing this, it allows all McLaren fans to purchase merchandise and support their favorite team at any, if not all the events and series that they participate in. Although it seems like such a trivial switch, it’s one that speaks volumes as this notion of becoming one flagship brand was a very common theme heard throughout the day of the launch.

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Small Details, Big Impact

Lauren also went on to explain the intricacies of the logo and partnership placements on the cars. It was incredible to hear how much planning and deliberation goes into the making of a vinyl sticker and how the placement, size and color scheme are all important factors that shift the weighting of the price point for sponsors when they enter a deal with the team. While most brands are looking to have their logo front and center on the sidepod of the car, Lauren was explaining the actual high ticket area could be argued for the rear wing because that’s where the broadcast focuses more during moments of on-track action.

All of these tiny details contribute to a larger, more focused plan that McLaren has for appeasing their sponsors and partners while also making their cars look cohesive and unique. Although the actual liveries of the cars didn’t seem to change as much between 2025 and 2026, the tiny details that were switched, more Papaya orange on Christian’s car or more black on Pato’s car, are all things that are aimed at making the cars stand out on track and feel dynamic amid the IndyCar grid. 

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A New Home Base

Now for the factory itself. Tony Kanaan, Arrow McLaren Team Principal, took us through the details of the changes and expressed what it meant for the team to now be situated in a Racing Center that reflected the high standards they are aiming to set. Kanaan stated: 

“…It’s a new house, we have space, it’s very organized and the way we want it organized. The guys are pumped… [it] doesn’t mean anything. It doesn’t mean that because we have this facility, we’re going to win more races or less, but I think creating an environment that is up to the standards that even psychologically we’re now equal to the teams we compete against, it’s important.”

Now that the team has a home base that will allow them to perform at their best, the expectations have been raised and everyone is preparing for the season ahead in full swing. As we explored the nooks and crannies of the new McLaren Racing Center, the pride and excitement around the new facility was palpable.

Christian Lundgaard, one of the three drivers for Arrow McLaren, sat down with us to talk through his career trajectory and express his thoughts about the new launch. He was just as equally ‘pumped’ as Kanaan would put it, and was saying that since they now have a facility that enables perfection, the team needs to show up with that same level of grit on and off the track. It’s a new motivation that gives everyone involved a purpose and clear goal to execute on.

Kevin Thimjon, President of Arrow McLaren, was explaining to us the sheer expansion of the Racing Center and how their performance was being impacted negatively by the lack of space at their old location. He explained:

“We didn’t have room for most of this equipment in our last shop. So, this is where you can see a true production gain. If we decided… we have to update this part, we’d have to outsource it, sometimes you’re talking 2-3 weeks to get it. Now, the engineers make a decision, it goes to our designers, comes to production, [and] it can be on the car in 2-3 days. That’s a significant impact on our racing and the performance of our team.”

With that in perspective, it makes you wonder what the team will be capable of without the disruption and bottle neck of the old facility.

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Out With The Old, In With The New

Although we arrived earlier in the morning, the rest of the factory didn’t start to fill up with their valued guests until about 4:30 in the afternoon. This was when it felt like the McLaren Racing Center came to life. Each and every employee was dialled in on making the guests feel welcome as well as offering Racing Center tours to anyone who was interested. It was an incredible thing to be a part of and I loved being a ‘fly on the wall’ to witness the surprise and shock seen on all of the guests' faces at the sight of the new facility.

At around 5:30pm, everyone in the Racing Center was wrangled and brought to the room where they would be unveiling the three cars. Jaime Little, the FOX reporter, was the host of the event and set the tone for what ended up being a very successful launch for the team. Unfortunately, Nolan Siegel wasn’t able to make it back to Indianapolis for the event as he was stuck in Dubai competing in the Asian Le Mans series, but Christian Lundgaard and Pato O’Ward were present and talked through their elation at the finished center and what it means to have a new base ahead of the 2026 season.

The two drivers unveiled the three cars with the help of Tony Kanaan and two other partners and everyone in the crowd was ecstatic at the reveal. As mentioned, the actual livery designs were not extremely different in comparison to what was dominating on track in 2025, but after learning about all of the intricate nuances to the livery, sponsor placements and deliberate color choices, I felt like all three cars looked phenomenal.

Once the actual reveal was completed, Arrow McLaren made sure to take care of their guests by having the most gorgeous charcuterie board set up, complimentary sushi, and most importantly, an open bar. As everyone mingled and gaped at their surroundings, the team marveled at the success of their launch but were mentally preparing for the hard work that the start of the 2026 season will bring.

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