Loop’s Partnership With McLaren Is A Match Made In Heaven

Words by Steve Hopkinson

In the build-up to the British Grand Prix this weekend, McLaren’s Formula 1 team are leaving no stone unturned in their pursuit of a perfect performance. Their drivers, Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, are first and second in the drivers’ standings, ahead of reigning champion, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. As McLaren fight to stay ahead of their rivals to secure their first drivers’ title since 2008, every member of the team will be equipped with a secret weapon: a pair of Switch™2 earplugs from Belgian sound innovators Loop.

To celebrate becoming McLaren’s first ever official earplug partner, Loop have released a limited edition version of their performance-focused Switch™2 earplugs. The McLaren Formula 1 Team x Loop Switch™2 earplugs have an orange-tinted, chrome-like finish, inspired by the team’s signature papaya-coloured livery, with a design optimised for maximum performance when operating in the intensity of the Formula 1 paddock: “one of the most high-pressure, fast-moving environments in the world”, according to Dimitri O, Loop’s co-founder.

Loop was established in 2016 by Belgian engineers Maarten Bodewes and Dimitri O. After suffering hearing damage during a night out, the two friends were frustrated to discover that there was nothing on the market providing high-fidelity sound control in an attractive package. They founded Loop to develop the product they wanted for themselves: design-forward hearing protection that didn’t compromise sound quality.

Since then, Loop has gone global, partnering with Coachella and Tomorrowland, and becoming a must-have item among the record-breaking crowds of Taylor Swift’s Eras tour. Their market-changing mission is to “redefine earwear as a lifestyle accessory, in the way sunglasses evolved from eye protection to a personal style statement,” according to Dimitri. and they’re well on their way, with lookalikes hitting the catwalk and the brand scoring the ultimate cultural reference point, a joking-not-joking Instagram exchange with Balenciaga. “It shows we’ve been able to make hearing protection and earplugs a part of culture, something desirable, something sexy,” says Bodewes, proudly.

Uniquely among Loop’s products, the Switch™2 features three noise reduction modes, giving users the flexibility to tune their performance as needed. On the lightest setting, they dial out background noise to add clarity during critical conversations; in their highest mode even loud sounds are blocked, supporting intense focus and recovery. Sidestepping the need for a battery or app, the modes are selected using the namesake switch: a passive design integrated into the body of the earplug. The Switch’s flexibility makes it perfectly suited to sport, where competitors’ needs change from moment to moment.

Maarten and Dimitri aren’t strangers to high-profile sporting partnerships, either. Last year they partnered with Team Belgium in the weeks leading to the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, providing every athlete with a set of Loop earplugs to support their preparation and training. “The Olympics was an incredible milestone,” says Dimitri. “We were able to help elite athletes sharpen their focus and recovery.”

Following the success of the Olympics collaboration, motorsport was an obvious target for Loop’s performance line—according to Dimitri, “when we looked at where Loop could make the biggest impact next, Formula 1 was the clear choice”—but like their previous products, it was also rooted in Maarten and Dimitri’s personal experience. “Maarten and I have been motorsport fans for as long as we can remember. Not just Formula 1, but cars, bikes, racing in general. This collaboration is about our love for motorsports and everything that comes with it.”

One of the defining features of Formula 1 is noise. Grands Prix mean huge crowds, industrial equipment, wheel guns, military flyovers, media helicopters – and, not least, the cars themselves. “Racing is insanely loud”, says Dimitri. “Formula 1 cars hit over 130dB on track. Even in the grandstands, spectators experience over 110dB.” (For reference, 110dB is the equivalent of putting your head next to a power drill, or an ambulance with the siren blaring, while 130dB is the equivalent of an air raid siren or a military jet taking off).

While drivers’ actions on the circuit are the most visible part of a race weekend, most of the team’s work happens off-track, as drivers and engineers pore over masses of data looking for anything that can give them a competitive advantage. In a season where most pole positions have been decided by hundredths of a second, a team’s ability to tune out the noise and focus can mean the difference between winning a race and losing ground in the championship.

While the collaboration gives McLaren a competitive advantage, it also gives Loop a real-world insight into the impact of their products: “Working with McLaren has deepened our understanding of how sound impacts people operating in high-pressure, high-performance environments,” says Dimitri. But he also wants the learnings from the partnership to benefit Loop’s everyday users. “Our evolution has made it clear that sound shapes everyone’s life, regardless of age, background or lifestyle. Controlling sound is essential to performance and wellbeing.”

The first time McLaren and Red Bull fought for the title, McLaren brought a secret weapon to the fight: their car featured two aerodynamic modes, giving drivers the flexibility to tune its performance as needed. Sidestepping the sport’s ban on active aerodynamics, the modes were selected by covering an exposed air duct in the cockpit: a passive design integrated into the body of the car. 

That year, McLaren narrowly missed out on the title after staying in the hunt until the final race. If McLaren’s—and Loop’s—pursuit of performance delivers a strong result at Silverstone this weekend, their first driver’s title since 2008 could be secured well before the championship reaches in Abu Dhabi.

The McLaren Formula 1 Team x Loop Switch™2 (Limited Edition) earplugs are £59.95, available from loopearplugs.com.