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Rowan Atkinson sells his McLaren F1 for $12 million

With little over a hundred produced (including prototypes and racers), there aren't a lot of McLaren F1 owners out there. Rowan Atkinson is among the most prominent, but he won't be any longer as reports from the UK reveal that he's sold his F1. The actor best known for his role as Mr. Bean bought his McLaren back in 1997 when it was still new for what was then a princely sum of GBP540,000 (about $830k). He drove it regularly over the nearly two decades since, putting some 41,000 miles on the odometer and crashing it twice – the most recent collision in 2011 cost his insurers a reported $1.4 million to fix. With values for the McLaren F1 skyrocketing, Atkinson put it on the market earlier this year. The consignment was handled by London classic and supercar broker Taylor & Crawley, headed by the same David Clark who sold Atkinson the car when he served as McLaren's sales director. Although the final transaction price has not been disclosed, the original asking price was GBP8 million – equivalent to over $12 million at current exchange rates. The supercar was reportedly purchased by another British enthusiast who intends to drive it as frequently as Atkinson did. Private treaty sales like this (where prices are not generally disclosed) notwithstanding, the Atkinson sale would eclipse the highest price paid to date for the iconic supercar at auction. According to Sports Car Market, the top price paid was at Pebble Beach in 2013, where Gooding & Co sold one for just under $8.5 million. The same event the following year saw one go unsold, despite a high bid of over $10 million. Related Video:

McLaren won't do an SUV, says company design chief

While many carmakers traditionally known for supercars have bolstered their lineups with SUVs and crossovers, that will not happen with McLaren. At least according to McLaren design chief Mark Roberts, as quoted by Automotive News. Roberts made the statement at an event preceding the Canadian International Auto Show in Toronto, saying, "We really do deliver on the ultimate driving experience. For us, it means no compromise. An SUV doesn't allow us to deliver on that. It's not a no-compromise kind of vehicle." Company boss Mike Flewitt was asked the same question way back in 2014, and the response was similar: "We need to remain very focused. McLaren is a sports car brand, and that's exactly what we're going to remain." For a number of sports car brands now offering SUVs, it's all about making money to make money: Selling profitable, in-demand, high-riding vehicles provides them with the bankroll to keep developing their low-slung core products that show the brand in the best light. For McLaren, dilution like that isn't an option, despite its intent to bring as many as 18 new models to the market by 2025, electrifying its lineup with hybrid tech. Roberts told Automotive News: "For a small company like McLaren, it's a big deal and a big challenge. It's putting a big demand on [McLaren's production facility] to step up to demand and build more volume." Still, for some carmakers, the old thought "Never say never again" will prove true: Ferrari CEO Sergio Marchionne famously told reporters in 2016, "We won't make an SUV. You'll have to shoot me first." Despite that, Ferrari confirmed an SUV was on the table when the late Marchionne was still very much alive. And Rolls-Royce, which recently launched its massive Cullinan SUV, reportedly " wasn't even discussing SUVs" as late as 2013. Related Video:

'World's Fastest Gamer' competition winner lands McLaren F1 simulator job

LONDON — A Dutch sales manager whose teenage hopes of a motorsport career ended when the money ran out won an eSports competition on Tuesday to become a McLaren Formula One simulator driver. Rudy van Buren, 25, a once-promising junior go-karter, came out on top at the end of a "World's Fastest Gamer" competition that started in May and drew more than 30,000 entrants. In the all-Dutch two-man showdown, after a week of tests and virtual races that started with 12 finalists at McLaren's headquarters in Woking, England, Van Buren beat 20-year-old Amsterdam student Freek Schothorst. Van Buren had started karting at age 8, winning a Dutch junior championship in 2003, but he quit at 16 due to a lack of money. "Every boy that starts karting dreams about F1, and at a certain point that dream just vanishes," Van Buren said in a McLaren statement. "Now by winning World's Fastest Gamer, I can relive that dream." McLaren, the team of double world champion Fernando Alonso and past greats like Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost, were seeking to tap talent from virtual racing to help them develop their real car. Finalists were subjected to fitness and mental assessments as well as racing virtually on a variety of tracks, from Indianapolis to Interlagos. The 12, whittled down over the course of the week, included a Danish doctor, a 41-year-old French father of two, and a 23-year-old Briton who had yet to pass his real-world driving test. Van Buren was one of those with a strong resume from the world of eSports. "To think that I came to the McLaren Technology Centre for the very first time last week but am leaving here today as McLaren's newest employee is mind-blowing," he said. The competition is the brainchild of Darren Cox, whose Nissan GT Academy initiative took gamers out from behind a console and on to the real racetrack with professional works drives. "Rudy is a worthy winner and his story of being lost to racing, then rediscovering his passion though gaming and having his talent recognized by an F1 team is almost a fairytale," said Cox. McLaren, who have had a troubled three years with Honda in the real world and are hoping to rejoin the frontrunners with Renault power next season, see virtual racing as a growth area commercially. "With more than 10 million people viewing the competition, we've demonstrated the real value of eSports within F1," said McLaren's newly-appointed director of eSports Ben Payne.