Racing
© Jonathan Borba
McLaren has signed 11-year-old British karter Harry Williams to its driver development programme, making him the youngest prospect in the team’s history and underlining the team’s push to build a long-term pipeline into top-level racing.
The Cheshire driver joins two years younger than Lewis Hamilton did when he entered McLaren’s junior system at 13 in 1998. McLaren also said the previous youngest driver on its development programme was Ella Hakkinen, who signed last year aged 14.
Williams arrives after a rapid rise through karting. He started in the Super One Series in 2021, moved into the Cadet category in 2022, and after signing with Fusion Motorsport raced at national and international level in 2023. In 2024, he finished in the top 10 of the British IAME Inter Waterswift championship while continuing to compete internationally.
His results strengthened further in 2025. Williams became British Open Champion, won the O plate in the Italian Waterswift Series, and finished fifth in the European Waterswift Championship. After stepping up to junior classes, he also took third in the SK Final Cup in OKN-J.
That trajectory is why McLaren sees him as part of a wider development plan rather than a short-term project. Alessandro Aluni Bravi, McLaren’s chief business affairs officer, said Williams is “a fantastic karter” who has “impressed on the national and international stage so far,” while framing the signing as part of a broader system. “Our goal is to build a consistent pipeline, laddering into our race programmes in F1, IndyCar and the World Endurance Championship for many years to come, and adding Harry as a talented young karter demonstrates this,” he said.
Aluni Bravi also made clear McLaren does not intend to rush him. “For this driver, I think there is no target, no pressure other than enjoy karting to get maximum experience, but also to understand what does it mean to be a McLaren driver,” he said.
Williams said he was “really excited” to join a team “known for developing talent” as he continues his karting career and works toward single-seater racing in the future. His 2026 programme includes the WSK Super Master Series in OK-Junior, with the WSK Euro Series, Champions of the Future Series and the FIA Karting Championships also on his schedule.
For McLaren, the significance of the deal is not just Williams’ age. It is that the team is investing earlier than ever in a driver it believes can be developed over time, with a pathway aimed well beyond karting and into its race programmes across F1, IndyCar and WEC.