Bruce McLaren is a racing driver from New Zealand who last raced in Formula 1 for McLaren-Ford. McLaren has recorded 4 wins and 27 podiums from 103 starts.[1]
A Racer Rating of 5,136 ranks McLaren 272th of 15,348 indexed drivers, on an Elo scale where the strongest reach the low five figures. It is built from every indexed race in the driver's file, decayed for time since their last race.
| 1970-05-10 | Circuit de Monaco | DNF | −119 |
| 1970-04-19 | Jarama | P2 | +124 |
| 1970-03-07 | Kyalami | DNF | −97 |
| Season | Series | Team | Races | Wins | Podiums | DNFs | Poles | Points | Pos | Gain/Loss | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | ▸Formula 1 | McLaren-Ford | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | P14 | −93 | 5,473 |
| 1969 | ▸Formula 1 | McLaren-Ford | 11 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 26 | P3 | +198 | 5,565 |
| 1968 | ▸Formula 1 | McLaren-Ford | 11 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 22 | P5 | +355 | 5,367 |
| 1967 | ▸Formula 1 | McLaren-BRM | 9 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 3 | P14 | −535 | 5,012 |
| 1966 | ▸Formula 1 | McLaren-Ford | 5 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | P14 | −126 | 5,547 |
| 1965 | ▸Formula 1 | Cooper-Climax | 10 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 10 | P8 | −284 | 5,672 |
| 1964 | ▸Formula 1 | Cooper-Climax | 10 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 13 | P7 | −275 | 5,957 |
| 1963 | ▸Formula 1 | Cooper-Climax | 10 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 17 | P6 | −208 | 6,232 |
| 1962 | ▸Formula 1 | Cooper-Climax | 9 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 32 | P2 | +394 | 6,439 |
| 1961 | ▸Formula 1 | Cooper-Climax | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 11 | P7 | +214 | 6,046 |
| 1960 | ▸Formula 1 | Cooper-Climax | 8 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 37 | P2 | +668 | 5,832 |
| 1959 | ▸Formula 1 | Cooper-Climax | 7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 17 | P6 | +257 | 5,163 |
| 1958 | ▸Formula 1 | Cooper | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | P22 | +106 | 4,906 |
| Rival | Rating | Raced | Ahead | Behind | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🇬🇧 Graham Hill | 5,097 | 41 | 18 | 23 | 44% |
| 🇦🇺 Jack Brabham | 5,211 | 31 | 14 | 17 | 45% |
| 🇬🇧 Jim Clark | 5,692 | 29 | 10 | 19 | 34% |
| 🇺🇸 Dan Gurney | 4,902 | 27 | 10 | 17 | 37% |
| 🇸🇪 Jo Bonnier | 4,402 | 25 | 20 | 5 | 80% |
| 🇺🇸 Richie Ginther | 5,503 | 22 | 13 | 9 | 59% |
| 🇺🇸 Phil Hill | 4,199 | 22 | 14 | 8 | 64% |
| 🇬🇧 John Surtees | 4,899 | 21 | 5 | 16 | 24% |
| 🇨🇭 Jo Siffert | 5,058 | 20 | 13 | 7 | 65% |
| 🇬🇧 Innes Ireland | 4,610 | 20 | 15 | 5 | 75% |
Bruce McLaren was a New Zealand racing driver and engineer who spent thirteen seasons in Formula 1 from 1958 to 1970, starting 103 grands prix and scoring four wins and 27 podiums. He drove primarily for Cooper-Climax before establishing his own McLaren team late in his career, competing for McLaren-Ford in his final seasons. His average finishing position of fourth place across classified starts placed him firmly in the professional midfield; his Racer Rating of 5,136 reflects sustained competence against a field that included multiple world champions. He was runner-up in the 1960 drivers' championship with Cooper and secured victories at a time when grand prix racing was highly competitive and dangerous.[1]
McLaren's record against his most frequent rivals tells a story of a solid, consistent performer rather than a dominant one. Against Jim Clark, a two-time champion of exceptional calibre, he finished ahead in ten of 29 shared races but trailed in nineteen. Against three-time champion Graham Hill, he recorded eighteen finishes ahead to twenty-three behind across 41 encounters. He held a winning head-to-head record only against Jo Bonnier, a capable driver of lesser stature, beating him twenty times while being beaten just five times. Significantly, he managed four victories over Jackie Stewart, a three-time champion who arrived in Formula 1 after McLaren was already established; these results came as Stewart was rising through the field and before his own peak years. His ability to beat such drivers occasionally rather than consistently underscored his status as a front-running professional but not an elite champion.[2]
Beyond his grand prix career, McLaren distinguished himself in sports car racing, winning the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans with Chris Amon and the Canadian-American Challenge Cup in 1967 and 1969. His achievements across multiple racing categories, combined with his work as an automotive designer and engineer, marked him as a multi-talented figure in motorsport. He retired from racing in 1970 after thirteen seasons of competition, having built a lasting legacy both as a driver and as founder of the McLaren team that would dominate Formula 1 in decades to come.