Oscar Piastri to Red Bull? Zak Brown responds amid McLaren exit rumours

McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown believes that both of the team’s drivers, reigning world champion Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, would be a welcomed steal for any rival team.

Arguing that this extends to team personnel beyond just the McLaren drivers, Brown spoke of not wanting to force anyone to stay, but rather create an environment which they do not want to leave. Piastri was recently linked with Red Bull as a Max Verstappen replacement.

Zak Brown responds amid Oscar Piastri Red Bull rumours

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The Red Bull and Formula 1 future of Verstappen has re-emerged as a talking point. If Verstappen decided to move on from the team or the sport in general, Piastri found himself namedropped as a target to replace the four-time world champion.

McLaren has bounced back from a challenging start to Formula 1’s new era. Piastri finished P2 in Japan, having led in the early stages of that race. Norris won the Miami Sprint in a McLaren one-two, and pressurised championship leader Kimi Antonelli in the Grand Prix, ultimately finishing second.

“I would imagine there’s not a team on the grid that wouldn’t want to have Oscar and Lando driving for them,” Brown told The Athletic.

Brown wants both drivers to stay with McLaren under their own will, not because their contract says so.

He argues that “my job, our job” is to “create an environment where our drivers don’t want to drive anywhere else, or, for that matter, our employees or our sponsors don’t want to sponsor another team.”

Brown believes that “there’s a lot of talent inside McLaren that other racing teams would like to have.”

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Oscar Piastri should stay with McLaren

In the event of Verstappen leaving Red Bull, an offer to take over that number one role, and mould the team as desired, would be tempting. But, Piastri should not take it.

McLaren, as a unit, gives off the vibe that it is destined for continued success.

The reigning champions may have stumbled slightly out of the blocks in F1 2026, but the recovery has been swift and impactful.

Already with its Miami upgrades, McLaren put itself back in the conversation at the front, as it struck gold once again in the development war.

Plus, Piastri does not need to escape any Norris-shaped shadow to succeed. McLaren is committed to being a two-driver team, and creating that level playing field.

Sure, one could counter by saying why should Piastri have to share the spotlight. He can have it all at Red Bull. It is a team in a rebuilding phase, and Piastri could spearhead that in the event of a Verstappen exit.

But, overall, it feels like Piastri would have little to gain by walking away from the well-oiled, title-ready McLaren team.

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