Zak Brown

As Chief Executive Officer of McLaren Racing, Zak Brown has overall responsibility for the business, including strategic direction, operational performance, marketing and commercial development. Since joining the team in 2017, he has led the transformation of the brand and culture of the McLaren Formula 1 team and put in place the people, resources, infrastructure and mindset that has enabled McLaren to return to racing at the front of the F1 grid. Zak has taken McLaren Racing onto a global motorsport stage, with McLaren teams now racing in IndyCar, Formula E, Extreme E and esports, with the World Endurance Championship joining the line up in 2024.

Born and raised in California, Zak raced professionally around the world for 10 years before developing his skills in motorsport’s business and commercial worlds. In 1995, he founded JMI, which grew to become the largest and most successful motorsport marketing agency in the world. JMI was acquired in 2013 by CSM, a division of Chime Communications.

Zak is a racer and renowned for his energy, his relentless work ethic and his knowledge of the business and history of motorsport. He’s been unafraid to publicly address some of the issues facing the world of motorsport and has been the lead protagonist around the budget cap, sustainability and diversity in the sport, as well as champion of fans interests. He has demonstrated the ability to take the tough decisions needed to make an F1 team successful.

Zak co-founded and co-owns United Autosports, a leading racing team competing in international sportscar racing, the Supercars Championship in Australia, and various historic racing events around the world. Outside of work, Zak is an avid collector of historical documents, baseball and ice hockey memorabilia, and both road and racing cars.

He is married with two sons and several dogs, lives in Surrey in the UK and can be found on the golf course on his rare days off.