2018 IMAGES AND VIDEO: McLAREN MCL33 - BACK TO ORIGIN

McLaren today revealed its much-anticipated new Formula 1 car. The striking MCL33 will contest the 2018 FIA Formula 1 World Championship, and marks the first time in McLaren’s 52-year history that it has run a car powered by Renault engines.

The car will race in a stunning new livery that draws its inspiration directly from the team’s iconic papaya orange and blue colour scheme that McLaren first raced in Formula 1 50 years ago.

The MCL33 will be driven by Spain’s Fernando Alonso, the F1 double world champion entering his fourth consecutive season with McLaren, and his team-mate Stoffel Vandoorne of Belgium, who is starting his second season in Formula 1.

The engineering philosophy of the MCL33 follows the roots established by its predecessor, with data accumulated from the 2017 season feeding a range of improvements. Much of the work on the MCL33 has been around optimising the packaging of the new Renault engine, and the incorporation of the new halo device.

The MCL33 will conduct a dynamic filming day at a Spanish test track on Friday before beginning eight days of pre-season testing at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya next Monday.