McLaren has wasted no time flexing its 2025 constructors’ crown, announcing a major triple signing to its Driver Development Programme headlined by freshly-minted Formula 2 champion Leonardo Fornaroli. The 20-year-old Italian, who wrapped up the F2 title in Qatar with a round to spare, now follows in the footsteps of Oscar Piastri and Gabriel Bortoleto by winning both F3 and F2 back-to-back. Fornaroli will immediately step into a test and development role within the F1 team, putting him firmly on the Woking radar for future seats.
Joining him is Dutch racer Richard Verschoor, currently third in the F2 standings with four wins this season. The 24-year-old brings proven race-winning pace and will also benefit from McLaren’s simulator and testing resources as the team builds depth behind Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Rounding out the trio is 15-year-old Spanish karting sensation Christian Costoya, fresh from clinching the 2025 FIA European Karting Championship and set to make his single-seater debut in January’s F4 Middle East series.
The announcement underscores McLaren’s aggressive push to rebuild one of the strongest junior pipelines in the sport. With Fornaroli and Verschoor arriving from F2 and Costoya joining long-term prospect Dries Van Langendonck in karting, McLaren now boasts two of the hottest talents at every rung of the ladder. It’s a clear statement: even after clinching the constructors’ title, the team is already planning for the next decade of dominance.
Alessandro Alunni Bravi, McLaren’s Chief Business Affairs Officer, called it a “key priority” to keep feeding talent into their expanding racing programmes across F1, IndyCar, Formula E, and Extreme E. Fornaroli didn’t hide his excitement: “Winning both F3 and F2 has been huge, but joining McLaren is the perfect next step toward my dream of racing in Formula 1.” Verschoor and Costoya echoed the sentiment, both thanking the team for the life-changing opportunity.
Just weeks after adding Ella Hakkinen and Ella Stevens to the programme, McLaren’s junior roster is starting to look frighteningly stacked. With Piastri and Norris still only 24 and 26 respectively, the message from Woking is clear: the papaya era isn’t a flash in the pan—it’s built to last. Fornaroli, in particular, has put himself squarely in the conversation as the next potential superstar to graduate from the McLaren academy to the F1 grid.
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