McLaren CEO Zak Brown has revealed how the team’s desire “to explore the market” in Formula 1 extended to probing about Max Verstappen’s contract situation at Red Bull.
Earlier this week, the Woking-based squad announced that Oscar Piastri had put pen to paper on a fresh contract to commit to the reigning champions on a long-term deal.
Piastri’s extension has ensured McLaren has locked down the pairing that delivered the Constructors’ Championship in 2024, as Lando Norris renewed over 12 months ago.
Brown explained the timing of the deal, saying it was necessary to remove “distractions” to allow Piastri to perform at a higher level.
“We know we want to have stability and visibility moving forward,” Brown told select media including Motorsport Week.
“That puts everyone in a great frame of mind and I think obviously people perform at their optimum levels of performance when they’re not distracted.”
Red Bull has shown an interest in Norris and Piastri amid persistent speculation that the upheaval behind the scenes last term could encourage Verstappen to move elsewhere.
Mercedes is well-known for having courted the Dutchman since then, while Aston Martin has also been touted as a plausible destination should he opt to depart Red Bull.
But according to De Telegraaf, Brown had “some time ago” approached the Verstappen camp to enquire about the Dutchman’s future availability.
Verstappen is contracted with Red Bull through 2028 and it is widely believed he has several performances clauses in his deal that would allow him to cut ties with the Milton Keynes-based squad early.
The Dutchman has never made noise wanting an exit, however, and it’s believed Brown’s call was only “to explore the market”.
Signing Piastri for what could be the majority of the decade would suggest Brown’s interest in Verstappen was limited at best.
McLaren opted for ‘stability’ with Piastri renewal
McLaren locking Piastri down to such a lengthy deal on the eve of the season suggests that Brown’s exploration of the driver market yielded little if any reason to snatch a driver from a rival team.
Indeed, Andrea Stella said that Piastri’s deal speaks to a long-term vision of “stability” within McLaren’s ranks.
“I would say renewing Oscar onto a longer-term deal, seen from my point of view, that was, as a decision, simple, natural, and to some extent, consequential,” Stella said.
“Consequential to the vision Zak and I have for the team, which is a vision that looks at stability for the long term and looks at creating the conditions to perform, to be competitive.
“And for us, having Lando and Oscar on board is one of the fundamental conditions to be competitive.
“And it has already paid off immensely, because it’s thanks to having Lando and Oscar on board that we are the first garage, actually here we are the last garage, but the first position in the paddock, because they’ve been able to deliver 27 podiums, 8 victories, 11 pole positions, considering races and Sprints, and ultimately the World Championship.”
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