McLaren chose the glamorous occasion of the 1992 Monaco Grand Prix to launch its new supercar, the McLaren F1. The world premiere event was held at the renowned Monte Carlo Sporting Club.
Mark Roberts was fortunate enough to be responsible for planning the launch and has a unique insight into what went on behind the scenes.
Q. Can you describe what it was like behind the scenes at the launch of the F1?
It was all very exciting: the car had been in development for about two years, and still nobody had any idea what to expect. It was hard work and the cloak and dagger aspect of maintaining everything absolutely secret until the point of launch kept us all on our toes.
Who was in attendance that night? (both from McLaren and in the audience)
The audience was very glamorous with a selection of sports personalities and drivers including Ayrton Senna, Niki Lauda and Alain Prost among others. There were also numerous television personalities and rock stars. Ron Dennis and Mansour Ojjeh were of course present and the evening was hosted by the Formula 1 ITV presenter, Steve Rider.
Why was the premiere held in Monaco?
It really seemed like the natural choice. Monaco is the focal point of Formula 1 and quite possibly the most glamorous place in the world. It also has a certain aura; part traditional and reminiscent of La belle époque but equally young and dynamic. This was the perfect location for the launch of such an exclusive supercar, so we really had no alternative. It is a playground to the wealthiest people in the world and it is also the capital for exotic supercars. Never anywhere else have I seen such a concentrated mass of beautiful cars.
How many people were involved in organising the launch in Monaco?
Not a huge amount. I planned the launch concept personally and had organised support from a design agency. In total, we amounted to about ten people.
How long did it take to plan the launch in Monaco?
In total it took about 12 weeks, which is not a huge amount of time considering it was at the same time as the Monaco GP. We had a useful contact at the Monte Carlo Sporting Club and as you can imagine many other good contacts there, which helped enormously.
The car on display that evening was a clinic model; can you tell us a little more about it?
The car was the only full size clinic model built, having a full interior, opening doors and luggage lockers but a non working engine. The car had power so the lights and other electronic components were functional. You can see from the pictures that this car was extremely close to the final production design.
Have you got any funny stories of things that happened that evening?
It was a great experience with many stories to tell. From having a coffee with Ayrton Senna before the event to overtaking a queue of Ferraris in a Fiat 500 on the pavement when we were in a hurry. However, one story I like to tell is that of the look of astonishment on peoples faces when first seeing the car. When the event was over I was responsible for getting the car out of the Sporting club and over to a nearby beach where it was due to have a press event the next day. After the event and with the aid of some McLaren Racing colleagues, we pushed the car onto the street. Being approximately 03:30 in the morning we had hit the rush hour of all the party goers leaving (and probably arriving) at Jimmyz nightclub in their Ferrari's and Lamborghini's. When they saw the McLaren F1, their jaws literally dropped; I will never forget that. There were no problems getting the car to the beach, however there was no security present to guard it over night and through fear of leaving it alone, I pulled up a deck chair and slept rather uncomfortably through until the morning with the F1!
What is your most memorable moment from the evening?
I must admit, everything was memorable. However seeing Nicki Lauda sprinting out of his seat to see the car once invited to do so by Steve Rider was a true moment. Also being one of the first people able to tell potential customers about the car and finally share our project with them was a great experience.
