McLaren explain new £550million investment

Zak Brown has explained a fresh £550million investment in the McLaren Group is for the automotive branch of the company which has now joined the Racing division in being "fully financed".

Ares Management and Saudi Arabian state fund PIF have contributed to a significant investment in McLaren Automotive as the Group recovers from the difficulties of 2020 and begins to build towards the future.

Confirming the investment, CEO Brown has insisted it has no effect on the F1 team.

"We've raised £550million," he said. "That was at the McLaren Group level. It was really for our McLaren Automotive business.

"Racing, we announced our investment late last year so, like Racing, which has now been fully financed, Automotive now has the resources they need to execute their business plan.

"And it was made up of two majority investors, Ares and PIF, and then a handful, including some of the current investors, made up the other £150m.

"So it's £550m and a good day for McLaren Group, our Automotive business but it has really no direct impact on the racing team."

In December, an initial 15 per cent stake in McLaren Racing was sold to a consortium led by MSP Sports Capital in a move that saw the F1 team valued at £560m.