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Founded in 1963 by race car driver Bruce McLaren, McLaren cars raced at Indianapolis from 1970 to 1982 and won three times. McLaren has been involved in all forms of motorsport, including Formula 1, Can Am, and Indy. In recent years, they were battling for the lead in the 2010 Formula 1 World Championships.
This blue and yellow liveried car is the McLaren M16B that was driven by Mark Donahue at Indianapolis in 1972. Developed from the previous year's M16A, which dominated the opposition, the M16B was campaigned by both the McLaren team and the Roger Penske team that was sponsored by Sunoco that year.
Penske ordered two M16Bs for Mark Donohue and Gary Bettenhausen. At Indy, they qualified in third and fourth positions, and come race day, they led 151 of the 200 laps - including the all-important final one. For much of the race, it looked like Bettenhausen would be the clear winner, but an engine issue took his car out on lap 182. Donohue drove the Offenhauser-power McLaren M16B around the famed Indianapolis Brickyard at an average speed of 162.962 mph (a benchmark that stood for twelve years) to take the first of the three McLaren Indy 500 wins. This car is Roger Penske's first of 18 Indy 500 winners.
This was the first year in which 'bolt-on' rear wings were permitted, and with very generous specifications allowed to begin with, the speeds skyrocketed. (The M16 was the first car to make use of a rear wing in the Indianapolis 500 - that Designer Gordon Coppuck had introduced in 1971; United States Auto Club regulations prohibited bolt-on aerodynamic devices, so McLaren built it into the engine cover.) The M16B featured new, larger wings and a shorter nose that allowed the wing to hang farther back without exceeding maximum length.
Bobby Unser raised the single-lap mark from 179 to 196 mph in just one year. Donohue, who started third, qualified at 191.403 mph and he went on to establish a new record for 500 miles at 162.962 mph, a speed that held up for 12 years. The victory was Donohue's 50th for the team.
This blue and yellow liveried car is the McLaren M16B that was driven by Mark Donahue at Indianapolis in 1972. Developed from the previous year's M16A, which dominated the opposition, the M16B was campaigned by both the McLaren team and the Roger Penske team that was sponsored by Sunoco that year.
Penske ordered two M16Bs for Mark Donohue and Gary Bettenhausen. At Indy, they qualified in third and fourth positions, and come race day, they led 151 of the 200 laps - including the all-important final one. For much of the race, it looked like Bettenhausen would be the clear winner, but an engine issue took his car out on lap 182. Donohue drove the Offenhauser-power McLaren M16B around the famed Indianapolis Brickyard at an average speed of 162.962 mph (a benchmark that stood for twelve years) to take the first of the three McLaren Indy 500 wins. This car is Roger Penske's first of 18 Indy 500 winners.
This was the first year in which 'bolt-on' rear wings were permitted, and with very generous specifications allowed to begin with, the speeds skyrocketed. (The M16 was the first car to make use of a rear wing in the Indianapolis 500 - that Designer Gordon Coppuck had introduced in 1971; United States Auto Club regulations prohibited bolt-on aerodynamic devices, so McLaren built it into the engine cover.) The M16B featured new, larger wings and a shorter nose that allowed the wing to hang farther back without exceeding maximum length.
Bobby Unser raised the single-lap mark from 179 to 196 mph in just one year. Donohue, who started third, qualified at 191.403 mph and he went on to establish a new record for 500 miles at 162.962 mph, a speed that held up for 12 years. The victory was Donohue's 50th for the team.
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Recent Sales of the McLaren M16B
(Data based on Model Year 1972 sales)
McLaren M16Bs That Failed To Sell At Auction
1972 McLaren M16B's that have appeared at auction but did not sell.
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1972 McLaren M16B
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