The Can-Am sports car racing held from 1966 to 1987 was in a league of its own dominated by the most exotic race cars on the planet at that time, driven by champion racers from F1, NASCAR, and Indy-car. McLaren had the best years in the series in the M8D race car (popularly known as the Batmobile for its appearance) owing to the technological innovation driven by the spirit of racing. Now decades after that golden era of motorsports that exploded in popularity beyond belief, the McLaren gets a new racing avatar inspired by the renowned Can-Am racers.

This is the Mclaren Can-Am car homage concept car, the brainchild of designer Yosuke Yamada who has reimagined the spirit of racing as a homage to the era when motorsports overtook football and baseball in popularity. The whole design of the racer is centered around aerodynamic performance to make the car run at top speeds without any airflow resistance. If you look closely at the back, there is a pneumatic cooling power unit that draws the air inside the power unit for extra efficiency and peak output. That’s well complemented by the supercharged aero wing for the funneling effect produced by the two blades. On the sides too, there is an aero turbine to accelerate the airflow for cooling and aerodynamics. Not surprisingly, the wheels are also aero optimized to make the racer glide through at stunning speeds.

Yosuke has managed to culminate a unique interpretation of the McLaren design language with the apparent connection to the Can-Am racing cars with the sleek look to go with it. A futuristic car concept that’s dope for its sheer connection with the nostalgic era where high-speed racing was the cult. Fusing the retro with the modern looks of a McLaren race car is what makes this concept shout out loud, even though it is just at the blueprint stage!

Designer: Yosuke Yamada