Grégoire Saucy has secured a full-time drive with the McLaren Hypercar Crew for the 2027 FIA World Endurance Championship season after graduating from the McLaren Driver Growth Programme.
The 26-year-old Swiss driver earned the promotion following a powerful season of testing and growth with McLaren’s new MCL-HY Hypercar, which can make its WEC and 24 Hours of Le Mans debut.
Saucy has been closely concerned within the programme because the MCL-HY first rolled out at Varano, Italy, on 4 Might. One among two drivers chosen for the preliminary operating, alongside fellow McLaren works driver Mikkel Jensen, he attended all however one of many workforce’s growth exams and in addition drove the automobile throughout its public debut on the Goodwood Competition of Pace, alongside then-reigning Formulation 1 World Champion Lando Norris.
His promotion follows an equally profitable marketing campaign within the European Le Mans Sequence with United Autosports. Saucy and his teammates secured the championship title final month, recording two victories and 5 podium finishes throughout the six-round season.
Saucy has constructed a powerful endurance racing profession since dominating the 2021 Formulation Regional European Championship with eight wins. He moved into endurance racing shortly afterwards, competing within the WEC in 2024 and 2025 in a McLaren 720 LMGT3 Evo. His performances earned him a spot within the McLaren Driver Growth Programme and in the end a pathway to the producer’s new Hypercar challenge.
“I’m over the moon to be given this chance,” mentioned Saucy. “After I joined the McLaren Hypercar Crew for its growth season, I hoped it’d result in a full-time race seat, however I knew there was an excessive amount of skilled expertise within the driver market. I stayed centered, labored laborious and tailored rapidly to the MCL-HY.
“I’ve liked each second with this workforce: the requirements are extremely excessive, the individuals are supportive and the ambiance is implausible. I can not wait to proceed this journey. Thanks to Zak for bringing me into the McLaren Driver Growth Programme and to James for trusting me with this chance.”
McLaren Hypercar Crew Principal James Barclay praised Saucy’s progress all through the event programme, highlighting the function it performs in getting ready rising expertise for works-level alternatives: “Grégoire’s promotion is strictly what the McLaren Driver Growth Programme is designed to attain: figuring out distinctive expertise, supporting that growth and creating a real pathway to a works race seat,” mentioned Barclay.
“He has impressed us all through the MCL-HY check programme along with his tempo, methodical method throughout the workforce and his progress over the intensive testing schedule. He has earned this chance, and we’re excited to see him take the subsequent step in his profession with McLaren.”
Saucy’s appointment marks an vital step in McLaren’s preparations for its return to top-level endurance racing, with the Swiss driver now set to tackle his greatest problem but as a part of the workforce’s 2027 WEC marketing campaign.
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