He is the driver McLaren labelled the ‘next Lewis Hamilton’, but dropped him before he reached F1

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McLaren have now produced two Formula 1 world champions after Lando Norris’ victory at the end of the 2025 season.

Lando Norris followed in the footsteps of Lewis Hamilton, who was backed by McLaren since his karting career.

McLaren poached Oscar Piastri from Alpine’s academy, and it’s been an interesting year for the Woking-based team’s roster of young drivers.

Alex Dunne looked like a contender for the Formula 2 championship for some time, but was mysteriously dropped from the McLaren junior team midway through the season.

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It has since transpired that Helmut Marko tried to sign Dunne, only for Red Bull to block the move.

A group of young drivers have joined Dunne in leaving the team in 2025, while F2 champion Leonardo Fornaroli and his title rival Richard Verschoor have since joined McLaren.

One of the drivers that McLaren dropped this year was Formula 3 driver Ugo Ugochukwu.

That’s despite, as journalist Josh Suttill has shared, McLaren believing that Ugochukwu could be the next Hamilton.

READ MORE: All you need to know about McLaren F1 Team from team principal to engine

McLaren believed Ugo Ugochukwu was the ‘next Lewis Hamilton’ before dropping him

Ugochukwu was signed by McLaren as a 13-year-old after growing up in New York, winning several karting championships before he was signed in 2021.

Speaking on the Road to F1 Podcast, Suttill explained: “I remember writing the press release for him joining McLaren when he was like 13, years ago.

“So, I’m mainly annoyed now because I don’t have that claim to fame if he makes it to F1.

“Obviously, just to show that he’s been a prospect for a really long time now at McLaren.

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“They billed him as the next Lewis Hamilton. I remember they were quite keen for me to write it in a way that was like, this guy’s the new Hamilton, he’s going to have a trajectory and that guide path.

“And just it never quite worked out for him. But, to split ways, and you never know which side it’s on as well, like, it’s not like it’s just McLaren’s released him, it can be a mutual thing.

“It’s kind of frustrating because it felt like they were starting to have a bit of a breakthrough in the second half of the F3 season.

“He had really good pace, and it was like, ‘Yeah, this is the driver who was really impressive in flashes in Formula 4 and certainly in karting’.

“But, maybe it’s the case of it not being the right fit, purely from the Formula 1 side.”

READ MORE: Lando Norris sends to McLaren junior Ugo Ugochukwu after winning the Macau Grand Prix

What Zak Brown said about Ugo Ugochukwu and why he was dropped by McLaren

When McLaren signed Ugochukwu in 2021, speaking on McLaren’s official website, CEO Zak Brown said: “We’ve been watching Ugo’s progress with interest, so when the opportunity to sign an agreement with him became available, we had no hesitation moving on it.

“Now we’ll focus on giving Ugo the right support when he needs it to help him fulfil his potential.”

At the time, Ugochukwu explained: “I’m honoured to be signed by such an iconic team as McLaren Racing so early in my career.

“To have the support of McLaren is fantastic and what any young driver dreams of. I’m focused right now on developing as a driver and racer, so having McLaren by my side can only help me on and off the track.”

Unfortunately for Ugochukwu, he couldn’t follow in the footsteps of Norris, Hamilton or McLaren’s other graduates to Formula 1: Kevin Magnussen and Stoffel Vandoorne.

Ugochukwu won the Euro 4 Championship in 2023 and the iconic Macau Grand Prix in 2024, beating the likes of Dunne, British wonderkid Freddie Slater, and new McLaren signing Matteo De Palo.

The 18-year-old raced in Formula 3 in 2025 with Prema, but scored only two podiums and finished 16th in the championship.

He will continue in the series with Campos next year after a successful Super Formula test where Jack Doohan crashed on multiple occasions, but Ugochukwu’s racing career will now continue without the backing of McLaren despite his initial promise.