McLaren Automotive already has some very impressive track-only GT racing cars on their books, like the 720S GT3 and 570S GT4, but the latter will be replaced by the brand new Artura GT4, and now McLaren announces the McLaren Trophy, a new one-make supercar championship for aspiring and established professional and amateur GT pairings to debut in 2023 on some of Europe’s best racing circuits alongside Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS events.
This McLaren Trophy championship will be held with a new car, the McLaren Artura Trophy race car, which happens to be based on the Artura GT4, but being a single-make championship, the Artura Trophy edition does not have to adhere to GT4 rules, like the Balance of Power (BoP) regulations for instance, so the Trophy version can come with more power and increased downforce compared to the GT4 variant, this will effectively make the Artura Trophy about as quick as a GT3 race car.
The Artura Trophy naturally takes many parts from the McLaren Artura road car, like the McLaren Carbon Lightweight Architecture (MCLA) which makes it incredibly rigid and safe, in the Throphy version, the magnificent 120-degree twin-turbo V6 engine delivers its full 585PS making her sensationally fast in a straight line, add an enhanced aerodynamic package with a high-downforce wing, both low and high-speed corners can be tackled with ease, and the Artura Trophy sounds as good as she looks thanks to an enhanced exhaust system.
Just like the Artura GT4, this new Artura Trophy model will have combustion-only power, there is no hybrid setup in these race cars, and this also allows owners to convert the Trophy car they’ve come accustomed to, into a GT4 edition, all they need to do is change the aero parts and load a different engine management program, once you feel confident enough as a pilot, you can enter official GT4 racing without having to buy a new McLaren Artura GT4, these similarities also allow amateur drivers to enter the McLaren Trophy championship, as the McLaren Trophy is designed for serviceability from the start, with an adjustable Bosch engine management system, inboard radiators and a rear deck that can be lifted away without needing to remove the rear wing.
“I’m really looking forward to seeing the new Artura Trophy car in action. From my experience in both motorsport and at McLaren I genuinely believe that this is a great race car and a massive step on from anything we’ve ever produced before for this type of championship. There’s nothing that exists currently to offer the same prospect to aspiring or professional and amateur GT drivers and already we’ve had huge interest in both the new car and the championship.” Ian Morgan, Director of Motorsport, McLaren Automotive.
The McLaren Trophy Championship will be open to the new Artura Trophy but also to existing 570S Trophy cars, several of the independent teams have been running the latter in the Pure McLaren GT Series before, so they are welcome to join the new Championship, the 570S Trophy car is no longer in production, but McLaren Customer Racing continues to support owners and teams with replacement parts and technical backup, and the 570S Trophy will still compete for class wins and championships in 2023.
As we already mentioned, the McLaren Trophy Championship will join the Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe on some of the most interesting circuits in Europe, McLaren even offers a concierge service so drivers can concentrate on driving their Artura Trophy and don’t worry about shuttle services, hotel reservations and other boring stuff like that, each race weekend will have two 60-minute practice sessions to get to know the track, after that, each race day starts with a 15-minute pre-qualifying session, a 15-minute qualifying, and subsequently, a 50-minute race with mandatory pit stops for driver changes
The inaugural McLaren Trophy season will feature five races at iconic Grand Prix circuits including Paul Ricard, Hockenheim, and Barcelona, with a round on the bill of the famous Spa 24-Hour race.
2023 McLaren Trophy, Europe calendar
| June 2-4 | Paul Ricard | France |
| June 30 – July 2 | Misano | Italy |
| July 27-30 | Spa-Francorchamps | Belgium |
| September 1-3 | Hockenheim | Germany |
| September 29 – October 1 | Barcelona | Spain |
“We are excited to announce the McLaren Trophy, featuring the new Artura Trophy race car; an elite motorsport championship with a premium paddock experience that is the epitome of the McLaren brand. As the world of Pro-Am GT racing continues to grow, we look forward to welcoming both old friends and the next generation of McLaren drivers to our paddock and many exciting seasons of racing with the spectacular new Artura Trophy race car.” Gareth Dunsmore, Chief Marketing Officer, McLaren Automotive
