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Fernando Alonso will drive for McLaren in F1, Toyota at Le Mans, WEC

Fernando Alonso will drive for Toyota in this year's Le Mans 24-hour race and the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC), his McLaren Formula One team said on Tuesday. The Spanish double F1 world champion has been considering taking part in endurance events as he bids to emulate Graham Hill, the late Briton who won the Formula One world title, Indianapolis 500 and Le Mans in the 1960s. "I've never been shy about my aim of winning motorsport's Triple Crown — the Monaco Grand Prix, the Indy 500 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. We tried for Indy last year, came close, but just missed out," Alonso said in a statement. "This year, I have the chance thanks to McLaren to race for the win at Le Mans. It is a big challenge — much can go wrong — but I am ready, prepared and looking forward to the fight." Following his appearance in the 24 Hours of Daytona last week, a deal has been reached with Toyota for the 36-year-old Alonso to take part in as many WEC rounds as possible. McLaren and Alonso have agreed, however, that Formula 1 remains their shared priority and he will miss the Japanese leg of the WEC season on Oct. 21 due to it clashing with the U.S. Formula One Grand Prix. Reporting by Hardik VyasRelated Video:

The inside story on why McLaren will make an F1 successor

While official details are still few and far between, Flewitt confirmed the BP23 will be the fastest, most powerful car McLaren has ever built. McLaren's car-building division is keeping busy these days. It introduced the brand-new 720S during the Geneva Motor Show and its research and development department is currently working on no less than nine vehicle programs. Company CEO Mike Flewitt reiterated one of them is a long-awaited (and oft-rumored) supercar with three seats. Codenamed BP23 internally, the model will join McLaren's Ultimate Series lineup as an homage to the emblematic F1, the brand's very first road-going model. Flewitt explained the project started out as a one-off model commissioned by a collector and designed by McLaren Special Operations (MSO), a skunkworks team in charge of turning money-no-object customers' wildest dreams into road-going realities. It's difficult to keep a secret in the auto industry, especially when it comes to high-end cars, so news of a modern-day three-seater quickly spread outside of the company's headquarters in Woking, England. McLaren soon received an order for a second, identical car, and MSO agreed to build it. The orders kept pouring in. Production was bumped to 12 examples, up again to 46 to meet considerable demand, and finally capped at 106. The number was chosen because precisely 106 examples of the BMW-powered F1 were built from 1992 to 1998. View 6 Photos While official details are still few and far between, Flewitt confirmed the BP23 will be the fastest, most powerful car McLaren has ever built. It won't feature aggressive-looking spoilers, splitters, and big wings; instead, it will boast a fluid, streamlined design fine-tuned to achieve the lowest possible drag. All 106 examples will be coupes, and a convertible model has been categorically ruled out. The only technical information currently available is that power will come from a V8-electric hybrid drivetrain. However, Flewitt noted the BP23 is not being developed with racing in mind, so McLaren won't offer a track-oriented, GTR-badged version of the car like it did with the F1 and, later, the P1. Expect a luxurious, well-appointed cabin in which the driver sits front and center, and two passengers travel in individual back seats. The extensive use of carbon fiber will keep weight in check. The BP23 – a name that most likely won't be retained on the final model – is scheduled to enter production in 2019.

McLaren sets release date for next hypercar, confirms track focus

We don't have long before we finally get to see McLaren's next hypercar, an addition to the Ultimate Series, meaning it will have performance comparable to the P1. Specifically, we have less than a month to wait, since the car, supposedly called P15, will be revealed on Dec. 10. The company also released its second teaser for the car. It shows a very slender taillight with a large slatted vent above it and a mesh covered vent below it. Combined with the triple-exit exhaust we've previously seen, it should be quite aggressive-looking. McLaren is staying fairly tight-lipped outside of these small details, but it did confirm one thing that was rumored. The company said that this will indeed be an extremely track-focused car, more than any previous McLaren, with "daily usability sacrificed to give the most intensive driver experience around a circuit." This should also provide some contrast with the other hypercar in development, the BP23, which McLaren describes as being a "Hyper-GT," which seems to imply that it will be more comfortable and practical. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Image Credit: McLaren McLaren Coupe Future Vehicles Supercars mclaren p15