The F1 race season is almost here in Austin, and the excitement buzzing around the paddock and across the globe is truly unmatched. Having experienced it firsthand in Austin over the past few years, I can say there is nothing quite like the energy and enthusiasm that fills the city during race week. Nowhere else do you see such a passionate blend of innovative technology, adrenaline, and international excitement as you do during a Formula 1 Grand Prix weekend. For those of us who work behind the scenes, this energy is matched by a sense of pride and responsibility in keeping the digital heartbeat of the sport running securely.
McLaren has had a dominant 2025 Formula 1 season so far, securing 11 victories out of 14 Grand Prix races prior to the summer break. This remarkable performance underscores the critical role of every component, both on and off the track, in their pursuit of excellence.
At the heart of this effort is a partnership built on trust, one that has grown stronger and deeper with every season. The relationship between McLaren and Cisco is not about technology contracts or branding. It is about years of collaboration, shared challenges, and a mutual commitment to innovation and reliability, both on and off the track. That trust has become the foundation of McLaren’s digital resilience, especially as the team faces ever more complex and high-stakes security challenges.
A Partnership That Grew with the Stakes
The journey between McLaren and Cisco kicked off back in 2021, right when remote work was at its peak. At first, Cisco Webex made it possible for the team to connect and collaborate from anywhere, whether at McLaren’s headquarters, at the track, or on the move across the world. That foundation set the stage for what came next.
By 2022, the needs had shifted. It was not about staying connected anymore, it was about doing so with blazing-fast, reliable networking. That is when Cisco’s latest tech, including Wi-Fi 6E, rolled out across the McLaren Technology Centre and at race venues. The data started flowing faster, operations grew even more global, and the need for real-time decisions became critical. That is when Cisco became McLaren’s Official Technology Partner, making sure every piece of vital information got where it needed to go instantly and securely.
The Security Shift: From Necessary to Non-Negotiable
Fast forward to 2024, and everything had changed yet again. F1 teams now deal with more sensitive data than ever. McLaren’s cars have approximately 300 sensors which generate a mind-blowing 250 million data points. Over a single race weekend, they are moving up to terabytes of telemetry, engineering files, and strategic insights worldwide. It is not just about performance anymore; it is about protecting McLaren’s future.
That is why Cisco stepped up as McLaren’s Official Cybersecurity Partner in 2024. Now, it is not just about connecting the team; it is about protecting every digital asset everywhere, whether at the racetrack, the McLaren Technology Centre, remote locations, or across every country and continent McLaren operates, all the time.
As the 2025 season continues, McLaren is embracing new technologies and navigating fresh regulatory and cyber challenges. The partnership with Cisco continues to adapt and strengthen, ensuring that as McLaren’s digital footprint grows, so does their ability to stay secure and competitive, no matter where in the world the race takes them.
Security in the Fast Lane
Global, Hybrid Protection
McLaren’s operations span more than 20 countries every season. Each location presents unique logistical and technological challenges. Cisco Secure Firewall is at the heart of McLaren’s digital defense, combining robust hardware at the Technology Centre, plus virtual firewalls and cloud-based security for the race sites and remote teams. Cisco’s cloud-delivered security solutions provide additional protection against malicious domains and threats, no matter where team members are located. Whether an engineer is on the pit wall, back at headquarters or working from home, security remains seamless and strong.
Encryption and Threat Detection at Top Speed
Every bit of sensitive data, from setup tweaks and lap times to design files is encrypted. And because F1 does not slow down for anything, Cisco Secure Firewall leverages hardware acceleration to inspect encrypted traffic in real time, helping ensure performance is not compromised. Working together, Cisco XDR, ThousandEyes, and Splunk deliver unified monitoring, threat detection, and analytics to proactively spot and stop threats before they become problems. Meanwhile, Cisco’s multi-factor authentication solutions add an extra layer of protection, reducing the risk of unauthorized access to critical systems.
Zero Trust, Real Results
McLaren’s approach is built on Zero Trust. Every user, device, and connection is continuously verified, which is crucial when the team is constantly on the move. Cisco Secure Access ensures that only authorized personnel can access sensitive resources, whether at the Technology Centre, in the garage, or traveling around the world. Secure collaboration is further enabled by Cisco Webex, keeping engineers, strategists, and drivers connected and compliant wherever they are. Behind the scenes, Cisco ThousandEyes offers end-to-end visibility across the network, helping McLaren proactively monitor, optimize, and troubleshoot connectivity to maintain peak performance at every location.
Security Culture and Resilience
What is truly inspiring about McLaren is how cybersecurity is embedded into their culture. It is not just a technology issue; it is a leadership priority. The team prioritizes ongoing cybersecurity awareness and training and keeps everyone up to speed on the latest cyber risks. Thanks to this mindset and Cisco’s support, McLaren can react to threats in real time and bounce back fast if something goes wrong. In F1, you cannot afford to be offline even for a minute.
Security Fuels Innovation
McLaren and Cisco have been more open than many in sharing aspects of their security journey in a sport where secrecy is the norm. By working closely together, Cisco and McLaren have shown that robust cybersecurity is not a roadblock, it is an enabler of innovation, speed, and agility. It allows McLaren to experiment, push boundaries, and bring innovative ideas to life, knowing that their digital world is protected.
Conclusion
With the Austin Grand Prix just around the corner, the trust between McLaren and Cisco is a perfect example of what’s possible when teamwork and technology come together, on the track and in cyberspace. In Formula 1, every millisecond matters, and every piece of data counts, no matter where in the world team is racing. At Cisco, we are proud to help McLaren defend every byte, every breakthrough, and every race today and in the seasons to come.
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