By Scott Campbell

Established by New Zealander Bruce McLaren in 1963, originally as Bruce McLaren Motor Racing Limited, the motorsport company was initially a small crew of committed individuals who had come together to design, build and race cars, operating from a workshop in the suburbs of New Malden, Surrey.

50 years later, McLaren now has its headquarters in Woking, Surrey, with an all-encompassing McLaren Technology Centre with 2,000 employees and a reputation as one of the world’s most dynamic high-technology companies.

Bruce himself had taken the team into Formula 1 at the 1966 Monaco Grand Prix since then, McLaren Racing has scored 182 victories, more than any other team in F1. It has also dominated the iconic North American CanAm sports car series, taking 43 wins between 1967 and 1972, won the Indy 500 three times between ’72 and ’76, and took the Le Mans 24 Hours on its first attempt, in 1995.

The impressive foyer of the McLaren Technology Center displays the impressive lineup of race and producer cars under the British marque

To date, the British marque boasts an impressive list of champions who have driven under its flag, ranging from Emerson Fittipaldi, James Hunt, Niki Lauda, Alain Prost, Ayrton Senna, Mika Hakkinen, Lewis Hamilton to currently, Jenson Button.

McLaren has also diversified itself from racing to supplying technologies to racing teams, with McLaren Electronic Systems, and providing expertise to elite sport and healthcare to energy and product design, with McLaren Applied Technologies.

In 1993, its roadcar division, McLaren Automotive, launched arguably the purest and most focused supercar in history, the F1, in honour of Bruce’s legacy. It has followed up with the groundbreaking 12C high-performance sports cars and most recently, the superlative P1 – McLaren’s newest and most exciting supercar.

In 2015, McLaren Racing is set to debut a technical partnership with Japanese manufacturer Honda, re-igniting a link-up which reaped 44 grands prix and eight world titles in the 1980s and ’90s.

On 2 September, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes Formula 1 drivers Jenson Button and Sergio Perez partook in the McLaren celebrations, driving in a parade of some of the most iconic race and championship winning McLarens from the past 50 years.

Before an audience of the entire McLaren Group staff, all dressed in Rocket Red T-shirts to honour the landmark occasion, Perez arrived in the 3,000th production McLaren 12C finished in Volcano Yellow, while 2009 World Champion Jenson Button showcased the McLaren P1.

Jenson Button seen at the 2013 Belgian Grand Prix

Jenson Button had this to add: “I’ve never hidden my pride at being a McLaren driver. I grew up watching this team achieving great things with Ayrton Senna and my racing hero, Alain Prost.

"For me, it’s hugely gratifying to not only be at MTC on the actual day of the anniversary, but to spend time with the thousands of people who all work with such skill and enthusiasm to make McLaren great.