McLaren F1 to race one-off Gulf livery at Monaco GP

Its cars will tackle the streets of Monaco in a distinctive blue-and-orange livery, with the whole team sporting the same colours throughout the whole weekend that spans from May 20-23.

The Gulf colour scheme makes its debut in F1, with McLaren realigning with Gulf Oil in July of last year.

The two companies worked together in the late 60s and early 70s, before linking up again In the 1990s for the Le Mans 24 Hours.

McLaren has previously run the iconic Gulf livery, running it in the 1997 Le Mans 24 Hours, where the team finished second.

The Woking-based outfit had teased the announcement with the tagline: "Bold is back," citing back to its long history with Gulf Oil.

Drivers Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo will wear Gulf-inspired helmets during the Monaco weekend, which will later be raffled for the team's charity partner, Mind.

The team has already confirmed it will release a merchandise line, inspired by the design of the Gulf-inspired McLaren car.

Speaking of the announcement, McLaren CEO Zak Brown said: “This will be McLaren’s homage to Gulf’s celebrated race car design. We’re enormous fans of brave and bold design, and the striking Gulf blue is among the most loved liveries in racing, a celebrated piece of culture which transcends the world of motorsport.

“Design has always been important to McLaren – you see this in everything we do from our return to papaya to our stunning headquarters, the McLaren Technology Centre. We’re excited to exhibit this as a team and celebrate our proud association with Gulf in Monaco.”

Mike Jones, Gulf Oil CEO, added: “Gulf and McLaren have a relationship that dates back to 1968 and is one of the most successful partnerships in motorsport. We are incredibly excited to pay tribute to this heritage with our classic livery design at the Monaco Grand Prix, the most spectacular and stylish event on the Formula 1 calendar.

“To see the reaction of both Lando and Daniel as well as the whole McLaren team to this livery has been really special and we are thrilled to unveil it to motorsport fans around the world. The distinguished racing blue and fluro orange Gulf colourways are iconic, so to mark our return to Formula 1 and showcase the livery in Monaco with McLaren is a great celebration of our bold and colourful place within the sport.”

McLaren has enjoyed an impressive start to the 2021 season as it sits third in the constructors’ championship, just ahead of Ferrari.

The streets of Monaco are expected to favour Ferrari, rather than McLaren, given the Scuderia’s impressive turn of pace in low-speed corners so far in 2021.