McLaren is set to celebrate its 1,000th grand prix start in Monaco – but there is some confusion.
McLaren’s gearing up for its 1,000th F1 grand prix start at Monaco GP, marking a significant milestone in the team’s history. Despite the celebrations, there’s a slight confusion as McLaren’s current count shows 998 starts out of 1,003 entries, making Monaco the 999th race with the actual 1,000th race set for the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix. The missing race being debated is the 2005 United States Grand Prix in Indianapolis, where McLaren drivers Montoya and Raikkonen did not race due to safety concerns but officially counted it as start #586. This incident contrasts with Norris and Piastri’s non-start in the 2026 Chinese GP, as they didn’t even begin the formation lap due to technical issues. McLaren’s history includes only four failed starts since 1966, including the Monaco GP in the inaugural year, the 1983 Monaco GP double DNQ, and Norris and Piastri’s recent non-start in China.
