Dunne ‘excited’ for future as he leaves McLaren

Ireland’s Alex Dunne, who has declared he is “very excited for what’s to come,” has immediately left McLaren’s driver development program.

When Dunne, a Formula 2 champion, finished fourth in opening practice in Austria in June, just 0. 06 seconds behind championship leader Oscar Piastri.

He became the first Irish driver to compete in a Formula 1 weekend in 22 years by winning the Austrian Grand Prix.

Dunne, who became the team’s development driver in May 2024, also participated in the first practice at the Italian Grand Prix in September, according to McLaren, who described the experience as “pleasant.”

Dunne stated in a social post that he was “very excited for what’s to come” and that he was using an “eye” emoji.

He said, “From today, I’ve mutually agreed to end my involvement with the McLaren driver development program.”

I’d like to thank every McLaren employee who has helped me grow and improve as a driver. Having my first race car and two FP1 sessions are things I’ll always cherish dearly, and I wish them all the best of luck in the near future. Papaya family, I’m grateful.

In his first F2 season, Dunne won two feature races in Bahrain and Imola, but he has since lost out on the title due to a number of technical collisions and infringements.

Qatar and Abu Dhabi are the two F2 season’s final two games.

Working with Alex over the past year has been a pleasure, according to McLaren, who has also helped him develop as a driver.

We wish Alex the best of luck in the direction of his career.

With title rivals Lando Norris and Piastri both under contract, McLaren, the championship leader, has no race seats available for 2026.