Amazon has announced that docu-series Grand Prix Driver, formerly known as the untitled McLaren racing series, will premiere on Friday 9th February, exclusively on Prime Video. The series is narrated by Oscar-winning actor, Michael Douglas, and gives Prime members unprecedented access to the drivers, engineers and leaders of the legendary Formula 1 race team, McLaren. All four episodes of the Prime Original Series will be available to stream on this date.
Grand Prix Driver goes inside the highly secretive world of Formula 1 by offering never-before-granted access to the inner workings of the McLaren team, one of the most successful teams in motor racing history. After two tough years at the back of the grid, McLaren is hopeful that this is the year they will be back on the podium and they have promoted rookie driver Stoffel Vandoorne alongside two-time world champion Fernando Alonso to work towards this goal.
Grand Prix Driver will take viewers through Vandoorne’s first few months with McLaren-Honda, including his grueling training regime, the highly anticipated launch of the new 2017 car and testing in Barcelona. Prime members will get to see challenges within the team, including rare insight into Alonso and his fierce drive to claim a third championship, new McLaren Executive Director Zak Brown’s quest for sponsorship in this expensive sport and the car build process, including the installation of the new Honda engine which no team has previously allowed.
“Grand Prix Driver provides Prime members unprecedented access to the McLaren-Honda team and its state-of-the-art facility and follows all facets of the team as it deals with a challenging 2017 season,” said Heather Schuster, Head of Unscripted, Amazon Originals. “Amazon customers will have a front row seat to the good and the bad—it will be unlike anything ever seen before in racing.”
“It’s no secret that this has been the most difficult season in McLaren’s history and it would have been easy for them to close the doors on us,” said Executive Producer Manish Pandey. “Instead, the team trusted Prime members to understand the mind-blowing complexity of modern Formula 1 and to recognize that all competitors take falls – but only great champions get up again, fight and win. And McLaren and Honda are great champions.”
“We were absolutely committed to opening every door for Amazon’s film crew as they followed us across our many months of preparation ahead of the 2017 Formula 1 season,” said Zak Brown, McLaren Executive Director. “We left no stone unturned in giving them the access and insight they needed – and the results, both the good and the not so good, are both revealing and compelling. I can’t remember a Formula 1 operation revealing as much as we have, and the results will show the sheer effort, ambition, hope and heartbreak that makes Formula 1 the greatest sport in the world.”
Grand Prix Driver is executive produced by BAFTA winner Manish Pandey (Senna, Ferrari, The Bentley Boys), Chris Connell and Anwar Nuseibeh.
