Last update: December 28, currently 14 models in this collection
The McLaren F1 GTR was designed by Gordon Murray as the ultimate street car. It also was the ideal car for the GT1 series were it competed against the Ferrari F40 and Porsche 911 GT2 and exotics such as the Venturi 600 LM. When GT1 ‘exploded’ and all kind of one-off prototypes appeared, McLaren built a longtail evolution version that was used until 2002. The Gulf sponsored cars were only active between 1995 and 1997.
1995
1995 BPR Global GT Series Nürburgring, McLaren F1 GTR. GTC Racing, sponsored by Gulf, entered two cars in the BPR Global GT Series. The #1 took 5 victories over the season, the main competition came from other McLaren teams; West competition won twice and Mach One three times.
#1 Ray Bellm (GB) / Maurizio Sandro Sala (BR) – 1st
#16 Pierre-Henri Raphanel (F) / Lindsay Owen-Jones (GB) – 4th
GTC McLaren F1 GTR shorttail – 6.1 liter BMW S70/2 V12 60º, approx. 600 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 1010 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. McLaren #002R & #008R
- MINICHAMPS MC530 154301 & MC530 154316 (diecast)
1995 BPR Suzuka 6h, McLaren F1 GTR. GTC Racing entered two cars in the BPR series in the color scheme of their sponsor Gulf. But for the race at Suzuka they changed it in this Ueno Clinic livery, the same with which Masanori Sekiya in his McLaren won the 24 hours at Le Mans two months earlier. The livery and driver bring luck; the team won the race!
#1 Ray Bellm (GB) / Maurizio Sandro-Sala (BR) / Masanori Sekiya (J)– 1st
GTC McLaren F1 GTR shorttail – 6.1 liter BMW S70/2 V12 60º, approx. 600 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 1010 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. McLaren #002R
- IXO Modern Le Mans & GT cars GTM054 (diecast)
1995 Le Mans 24h, McLaren F1 GTR. The 1995 Le Mans was a wet one, very wet. The WSC prototypes should have been faster than the McLarens, they were at least in qualifying. But because of the rain, their power advantage disappeared and the McLaren got their chance. The Kokusai Kaihatsu McLaren which started 9th won, other McLarens finished 3rd, 4th and 5th.
GTC #24 Mark Blundell (GB) / Ray Bellm (GB) / Maurizio Sandro-Sala (BR) -4th overall / 3rd GT1
GTC #25 Pierre-Henri Raphanel (F) / Philippe Alliot (F) / Lindsay Owen-Jones (GB) – DNF / accident
GTC McLaren F1 GTR shorttail – 6.1 liter BMW S70/2 V12 60º, approx. 600 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 1010 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. McLaren #002R & #008R
- ALTAYA #unknown (#24 diecast)
- MINICHAMPS MC530 154325 (#25 diecast)
1996
1996 BPR Endurance Series Paul Ricard 4h, McLaren F1 GTR. The 4-hour race at Paul Ricard was the first of the BPR Series in 1996. It was held in the beginning of March and the new GTC Gulf McLaren wasn’t completely ready yet. It appeared in a white livery, in qualifying it didn’t drive much and in the race it retired with a broken suspension.
#6 Pierre-Henri Raphanel (F) / Lindsay Owen-Jones (GB) – DNF
GTC McLaren F1 GTR shorttail – 6.1 liter BMW S70/2 V12 60º, approx. 600 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 980 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. McLaren #015R
- AB MODELS kit (resin)
1996 BPR Endurance Series Suzuka 6h, McLaren F1 GTR. For the seventh race of the BPR Series at Suzuka, the Gulf GTC cars showed an extra sponsor: local company Ueno Clinic. It brought them luck, because the #2 car won the race in front of a Ferrari F40 and 4 more McLarens.
#2 J.J Lehto (FIN) / Ray Bellm (GB) / James Weaver (GB) – 1st
#6 David Brabham (AUS) / Pierre-Henri Raphanel (F) / Lindsay Owen-Jones (GB ) – 6th
GTC McLaren F1 GTR shorttail – 6.1 liter BMW S70/2 V12 60º, approx. 600 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 980 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. McLaren #012R & #015R
- IXO KBI010 & KBI011 “specially built for Kokusai Boeki Kaisha Ltd.” (diecast)
1996 Le Mans 24h, McLaren F1 GTR. McLaren took a surprise win last year. In 1996 the competition stepped up; Porsche entered the 911 GT1, the Courage prototypes were again present and the Joest WSC-Porsche was fast and reliable. The GTC Gulf McLarens both finished in the top 10.
#33 J.J Lehto (FIN) / Ray Bellm (GB) / James Weaver (GB) – 9th overall / 7th GT1
#34 Pierre-Henri Raphanel (F) / David Brabham (AUS) / Lindsay Owen-Jones (GB) – 5th overall / 4th GT1
GTC McLaren F1 GTR shorttail – 6.1 liter BMW S70/2 V12 60º, approx. 600 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 980 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. McLaren #012R & #003R
- MINICHAMPS MC530 164333 & MC530 164334 (diecast)
1997
1997 Le Mans 24h, McLaren F1 GTR longtail. The original McLaren F1 GTR was no match for the new purpose built GT1’s like the Porsche. The longtail version is much faster but gets beaten again by the WSC Porsche from Joest. The GTC Gulf McLarens had a rough time: The #39 car retired in the closing stages after it set on fire.
#39 Ray Bellm (GB) / Andrew Gilbert-Scott (GB) / Masanori Sekiya (J) – DNF / fire
#40 John Nielsen (DK) / Dr. Tomas Bscher (CZ) / Chris Goodwin (GB) – DNS
#41 Jean-Marc Gounon (F) / Pierre-Henri Raphanel (F) / Anders Olofsson (S) – 2nd
GTC McLaren F1 GTR longtail – 6.0 liter BMW S70/3 V12 60º, approx. 600 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 915 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. McLaren #025R, #022R & #020R
- MINICHAMPS MC530 174339 (2x) diecast
#40 also caught fire, but this one during practice. It didn’t even start the race.
- MINICHAMPS MC530 174340 (diecast)
#41 finished 2nd overall, winning the GT1 category.
- MINICHAMPS MC530 174341 (diecast)
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