Taylor Barnard will be the youngest full-time driver in Formula E history when he takes to the track in Season 11.
The Brit has landed a full-time drive with McLaren for the 2024/25 season after making three appearances the year prior in place of the injured Sam Bird, becoming the first teenager to race in the all-electric series.
Now aged 20, Barnard will embark on his first full season in Formula E with the team alongside Bird. The Brit, who is moving over from Formula 2, finished 14th on his debut in Monaco and grabbed double points finish in the races at Berlin.
Season 11 will see new machinery hit the FE grid in the Gen3 Evo car, with its four-wheel drive capability and being able to accelerate from 0-60mph in 1.82 seconds giving the championship that bit more excitement with battles on track.
McLaren will keep Taylor Barnard ‘feet on the ground’ to cope with the pressure in Formula E
For 2024/25, which kicks off in Sao Paulo in December, Barnard will be stepping away from junior racing and into a professional environment.
What’s more is that the Brit will be up against experienced drivers who have been in FE since the start such as his teammate Bird, Lucas di Grassi and Antonio Felix da Costa.
Barnard will also go head-to-head with world champions, with Jean-Eric Vergne, Nyck de Vries and Stoffel Vandoorne among others who will present a huge challenge for the young talent.
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Racing with McLaren also brings its own pressure of being a huge organisation that is known for success. Speaking with Autosport, team principal Ian James outlined how the team will help Barnard deal with the pressure.
“We need to keep both his feet on the ground,” he said. “It’s going to be tough out there, there’s no doubt about it at the start of the season, and there’s going to be a lot of eyeballs on him, a lot of pressure.
“Our job now is to remove that, give him the support that he needs and just give him the platform to show what he’s capable of.”
McLaren have struggled for consistent results in Formula E
McLaren will head into its third season in FE in 2024/25, and it has been a challenging start in the series as a Nissan customer team.
The Woking-based outfit struggled for regular points in their debut year, registering one podium through Rene Rast in Diriyah. McLaren finished eighth in the Teams’ Championship.
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In Season 10, Bird and Jake Hughes showed signs of improvement with one podium each – with Bird claiming the team’s first win at Sao Paulo. But McLaren were again inconsistently in the points as they finished seventh in the standings, 13 points better than the year prior.
With an exciting young driver in Barnard and experience in Bird for Season 11, McLaren will be hoping this pairing will get the most out of the Gen3 Evo car and propel themselves up the field.