McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team and Central Saint Martins, UAL Take Pole Position on the Runway
Revealing their new fashion collaboration at the Designed to Race: Front Row event.
As Fashion Week kicked off in London, McLaren united with Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London, several miles away at the McLaren Technology Centre for a unique showcase of their collaborative collection.
Earlier this summer, the project commenced with McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team inviting the university’s MA Fashion students to design 12 looks that reimagine its motorsport heritage up to the present-day Papaya era. Spanning six decades, the cohort was split into groups and given an era to draw inspiration from. The process involved tactile practices like sewing, engineering new materials, and crafting components, as well as using Dell Technologies XPS laptops to elevate their creativity.
After months of work, the collection came together at yesterday’s show at the team’s headquarters. Titled Designed to Race: Front Row, the event honed in on the synergy between fashion’s innovative creativity and motorsport’s mechanical ingenuity. With McLaren Mastercard F1 Team Drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, as well as rapper Kojey Radical and celebrity stylist Edie Liberty Rose, stopping by the showcase, the diverse guest list brought tastemakers and prominent figures from the respective industries to celebrate the moment in the futuristic space.
At the start of the evening, Hypebae’s Editor-in-Chief kicked off a panel discussion with Chief Marketing Officer at McLaren Racing, Louise McEwen, Course Leader of MA Fashion at Central Saint Martins, Fabio Piras, Senior Vice President at Dell Technologies, Liz Matthews, and TV Presenter and Host of F1, Ariana Bravo.
“Design has always played an essential part in our racing team performance and brand,” began McEwen as she explored how design exists in racing. “Not just on the technical side, but with our liveries, and the role these have played in celebrating milestone moments.” Bravo then went on to speak about how this is received with fans, adding, “McLaren delivers that community feel through fan experiences, content creation, and creating tangible moments. Partnerships like these open new, imaginative ways to get excited about your team.”
Mclaren
Mclaren
Mclaren
Mclaren
Mclaren
Mclaren
Mclaren
Mclaren
Mclaren
Mclaren
Mclaren
Mclaren
Mclaren
Later, the conversation turned to the forthcoming fashion show. “One of the designers in the Group – Enzo Keuning – invented a technique, you’ll see today in Grit x Glamour,” shared Piras. Giving guests a taste for what was to come, he noted, “The scarf uses an interlocking technique that takes principles from econometrics to allow small pieces of material to be joined together. Like racing, it shows innovation in the smallest of details.”
With anticipation high, the 12 looks raced down the runway, through exhibits of McLaren’s racewear and championship-winning machinery. Among the outfits, new takes on iconic uniforms were presented in a Korean style, such as draped utility skirts, and the recognizable car seat was transformed into a cape. The Grit x Glamour focus, mentioned by Piras, showed up in a 1970s aesthetic undercut by British diasporic style. Meanwhile, technology-driven design powered by Dell’s XPS laptops brought new prints and vivid patterns inspired by aerodynamic geometry to the catwalk.
Elsewhere, guests also got an exclusive first look at the PUMA x McLaren Racing James Hunt collection. Available to shop globally from October 19, the range builds on Hunt’s effortless approach to racing style with structured jackets, soft hoodies and lightweight T-shirts. With these pieces and the bolder looks that appeared on the catwalk, the event became a statement of the different possibilities that can happen when motorsport unites with fashion.
Take a look back at the Designed to Race: Front Row showcase via the gallery above.
Designed to Race: Front Row is available to watch free and exclusively on the McLaren Racing Club, available to download on Google Play and Apple stores.
