The
Motorsport Industry Association Motorsport Industry Association (MIA) has named Zak Brown, CEO of
McLaren Racing, as the 2026 winner of the Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Motorsport Industry.
Mr Brown was presented with the Award by The Rt Hon the Lord Astor of Hever PC DL at the House of Lords, during the MIA’s annual Summer Reception on 23 June 2026. This award from the MIA, the global industry association for motorsport and high-performance engineering, recognises outstanding personal contribution to the sector.
Two hundred motorsport business and political leaders gathered at the prestigious event and celebrated Mr Brown’s contribution to the motorsport industry. Past award winners have included: Sir Jackie Stewart OBE, Sir Stirling Moss OBE, Toto Wolff and Ross Brawn OBE.
Zak Brown commented: “A huge thank you to the MIA for this honour – I will proudly take the award back to the McLaren Technology Centre to share it with the whole team. Formula 1 is the ultimate team sport and success isn’t possible without a strong team culture and great teamwork. We’ve been on an incredible quest back to the front of the Formula 1 grid, and I want to thank all the men and women at McLaren Racing who made it possible. I could not be prouder of what we have achieved together.”
Mr Brown raced professionally around the world for ten years before developing his skills in motorsport’s business and commercial world. He is renowned for his energy, relentless work ethic and knowledge of the business and history of motorsport. He’s been unafraid to publicly address some of the issues facing motorsport; being a lead protagonist around the budget cap, sustainability and diversity in the sport, as well as being a champion of fan interests.
Since joining McLaren Racing in 2017, he has led the transformation of the brand and culture of the McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team. He has put in place the people, resources, infrastructure and a high-performance mindset that has enabled McLaren to return to racing at the front of the F1 grid, securing two consecutive world championship titles in 2024 and 2025.
Chris Aylett, CEO of the MIA, commented, “The very welcome success of McLaren in Formula One was of substantial value to the UK motorsport industry. The influence of Zak on this achievement was very apparent, with McLaren Racing becoming world champions of Formula 1 in 2024 and 2025. On behalf of the MIA and our members, we extend our congratulations to Zak who is a much-deserved winner of this award.”