McLaren downplays connections between Piastri and Red Bull.

      "There have been no conversations or similar exchanges on that topic."

      Zak Brown has dismissed increasing speculation connecting Oscar Piastri to a possible move to Red Bull Racing. Rumors have heightened after reports suggested that Red Bull sees Piastri as their preferred choice to replace Max Verstappen if he eventually departs the team. This speculation arises amid ongoing uncertainty regarding Verstappen’s long-term future, following the departures of senior personnel, including race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase, who is anticipated to join McLaren in 2028, or possibly sooner.

      There have also been reports that Piastri and his manager Mark Webber were dissatisfied with how McLaren managed Piastri and Lando Norris during the 2025 championship battle, although Webber has publicly reduced his daily involvement this year. In an interview with the New York Times, McLaren CEO Brown acknowledged that interest from rival teams in both drivers is to be expected.

      "I would expect that there isn’t a team on the grid that wouldn’t want Oscar and Lando driving for them," he stated. However, Brown emphasized that McLaren's main focus is to create an environment where neither the drivers nor the staff would want to leave. "My general perspective, regardless of contracts, is that our task is to foster an environment in which our drivers have no desire to race elsewhere," he elaborated. "You don’t want to retain someone merely because of a contract."

      "You want them to feel, 'This is the team I want to race for.'" Brown reaffirmed his belief that Norris and Piastri form the strongest duo in Formula 1. "In all of our racing series, the primary goal is to achieve the best driver lineup possible," he remarked. "I wouldn’t swap ours for any other combination on the grid." Meanwhile, Piastri also downplayed the Red Bull speculation during an event in Montreal. "This comes as a surprise to me, because there have been no discussions or anything of that sort," the Australian noted. "While I am flattered by such discussions, that’s all there is to it. I think this indicates that my value as a driver is increasing, which is definitely a positive sign." "Nonetheless, I am very content with my current situation."