McLaren Racing of United Kingdom has signed Nigerian-American Kart racing young sensation, Ugo Ugochukwu, on a long-term basis in a bid to offer support for him through racing’s junior categories.
In a statement released, the Formula 1 team said that the agreement gives them an option to sign Ugochukwu to a race deal in future.
While talking about the development, the CEO of McLaren Racing, Zak Brown, said: “We’ve been watching Ugo’s progress with interest.
“So when the opportunity to sign an agreement with him became available, we had no hesitation moving on it.”
McLaren labels the move as a multi-year contract with Ugochuku and could sign him to a further multi-year racing deal.
Ugochukwu, whose mother is from Nigeria and father American, won the 2020 FIA OK-Junior European championship and in this season, he has graduated to the senior class.
Formular 1 racing not produced an American driver since Alexander Rossi partook in five races for the Marussia team in 2015.
McLaren F1 team principal, Andreas Seidl, said: “Ugo is a promising young talent with strong development prospects.
“While he is still early in his career, it is clear he has the ingredients to be successful in the sport.
“This signing reflects our refocused approach to identifying and supporting new talent, away from a formal young driver programme to a more tailored basis.”
While talking about the development, Ugochukwu said: “I’m honoured to be signed by such an iconic team as McLaren Racing so early in my career.
“To have the support of McLaren is fantastic and what any young driver dreams of. I’m focused right now on developing as a driver and racer, so having McLaren by my side can only help me on and off the track.”
