McLaren has signed 14-year-old Ella Häkkinen and wants to prepare her for a career in formula racing—her father Mika drove for the team for nine years.
The names Häkkinen and McLaren are inextricably linked, especially for Formula 1 fans of the 1990s. Mika Häkkinen won the world championship with the Woking-based team in 1998 and 1999, and now there is to be a “reunion” of this partnership.
On Monday, McLaren announced that it had signed Mika’s daughter Ella Häkkinen to its junior program. The 14-year-old is currently still competing in karting and will be prepared for a career in formula racing in 2026.
McLaren said: “She will participate in the driver development program to test single-seaters and prepare for 2027.” One possibility would be to participate in the F1 Academy, for example. McLaren will have two cars there starting next year. Currently, McLaren already supports Ella Lloyd in the women’s series, who will continue to be part of the junior program. The British driver is currently third overall in the F1 Academy ahead of the 2025 season finale in Las Vegas this weekend. In addition to Häkkinen, McLaren has signed another kart driver, Ella Stevens, meaning that there are now three female drivers in its junior program. Stevens, who is already 19, will compete alongside Lloyd in the F1 Academy in 2026.
McLaren boss Zak Brown explains: “I am aware that there is still a lot of work to be done to increase the proportion of women in motorsport, but I am very proud of the progress we have made in this area.”
“I hope this signals to all the incredibly talented female kart drivers, race drivers, engineers, mechanics, marketers, and accountants out there that our sport is open to everyone and that we are strongly committed to maintaining the incredible momentum of recent years,” said Brown.
Mika Häkkinen drove for McLaren in Formula 1 from 1993 to 2001. His duels with Ferrari driver Michael Schumacher around the turn of the millennium are still legendary today.
