Professor Gordon Murray has been awarded a CBE (Commander of the British Empire) in the 2019 Queen’s New Year Honors for “services to motoring.” Who are we to argue with the judgement, when this engineer-extraordinaire has been designing cars for more than 50 years, responsible for the McLaren F1 and some of the greatest Formula 1 cars ever, and is still designing innovative new cars today?
Gordon Murray designed his first car in 1967, then moved to the UK to join the Brabham Formula 1 team as Technical Director, where his cars won two world championships (1981 and 1983). He then moved to McLaren International as Technical Director in 1988, where the team won three consecutive championships (1988, 1989, and 1990). From there he formed a new company, McLaren Cars Limited, the first project of which was the McLaren F1 supercar. Even though Murray was initially against the F1, his perfect road car, being used in motorsport, the F1 went on to win two world sports car championships and the 1995 Le Mans 24-hour race. He was involved in other projects at McLaren Cars, including the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren. After more than 50 Formula 1 wins, in 2005 he formed Gordon Murray Design Limited for the design, engineering, prototyping, and development of vehicles, and is now working on a new supercar design.
“It is extremely humbling to receive a CBE in the Queen’s New Year Honors,” says Gordon. “I’ve spent more than 50 years doing what I love, working with a wealth of highly-talented and creative people around the world, but primarily in the UK. From the competing during the heyday of Formula One, to designing the world’s fastest supercar, I’ve loved every minute. I’d like to dedicate this honour to all those I’ve worked with over the years and I look forward to an exciting new future for the Gordon Murray Group.”
Images courtesy of Gordon Murray Design
