The motorsport arm of McLaren Automotive, known simply as McLaren GT, announced the addition of a new driver to their factory driver lineup for the 2015 season. The driver in question is the 31-year-old nephew of the great Ayrton Senna, Bruno Senna.

With experiences in Formula 1 and various forms of GT and endurance racing, Bruno Senna spends his time nowadays working with car magazines and TV shows such as Fifth Gear and the new Classic Car Show. Senna’s only prior involvement with McLaren GT was in a one-off appearance in the 12C GT3 at the Total 24 Hours of Spa in 2013 for customer team Von Ryan Racing.

As part of the Factory Driver lineup, Bruno, along with Rob Bell, Kevin Estre and Alvaro Parente, will be involved in the on-going development programme for the 650S GT3 and 650S Sprint models. They will also get to race the GT3 car in select events.

As we know from Porsche’s glorious motorsport history, factory drivers play a major role in the success of the company’s effort. The Germans have been doing this for year. Now it’s time for the Brits to catch up.

Bruno Senna, McLaren GT factory driver: ’It is a great honour for me to be joining McLaren; a team my uncle enjoyed such huge success with, and one of the most famous names in motorsport. 2015 is a big year for the whole of McLaren, and it is an exciting time to be part of everything that is taking place.

‘I am looking forward to working with the team at McLaren GT who I had a chance to get to know when I raced at the Spa 24 hour a couple of years ago, and I am really looking forward to getting behind the wheel of the new 650S. A lot of effort has gone into the development of the car since the 12C GT3, which I raced, and it made a big impression on its debut at the end of last season. It is shaping up to be a big year ahead.’