Brown: We don't want the drivers to be distracted from their work.

      During Friday's first practice session at Melbourne's Albert Park, the McLaren drivers were mostly at the top of the protocol. At the same time, Lando Norris led the minutes at the end of the session, and Oscar Piastri, his teammate, who a couple of days ago extended his contract with the British team for several more years, showed the 4th time.

      This was another confirmation of McLaren's speed, so Zach Brown was asked on Sky Sports how the team's management was going to act if both drivers had approximately equal chances for the title.

      But the McLaren Racing executive was very evasive.: "I think we will have to fully focus on winning the title and throw everything at it. This is how any team claiming to win the championship will act. Some of our rivals are going to pay more attention to preparations for 2026 – let's see how this will affect the course of events.…

      Of course, there will still be simple rules in the team this season: teammates must respect each other, and even when they are fighting hard on the track, they must leave each other a little more space on the track."

      Brown was also asked what was the reason for such an early confirmation of a new contract with Piastri, because the current agreements between him and the team expire only at the end of 2026.

      "Oscar is doing a great job, and I think our team has a great camaraderie," he said. – We can say that we don't have any personnel changes either on the pit wall or in the leadership of the technical department, and we are also very happy with our drivers. Therefore, we just want nothing to distract them from their work.

      Lando and Oscar are great teammates, both are capable of fighting for the title, so we decided to sign long–term contracts with both of them so that they can fully focus on fulfilling their tasks."