The silly season is in full swing, but McLaren CEO Zak Brown is happy that McLaren is not participating. The American is happy with the position of his team and that they have two drivers who are committed for the coming years. This way, the British racing team is not disrupted like some other teams, for example Red Bull Racing and Mercedes.
In November last year, McLaren announced that Oscar Piastri would stay for a while. Lando Norris’ contract extension was confirmed before the start of the 2024 season. This made McLaren one of the first teams to have already finalized its line-up for the coming season. Because there is currently still a seat available at Mercedes in 2025, the driver market is in chaos, and in Brown’s opinion this has a destabilizing effect on some teams. At least not on McLaren. ‘We try to participate in the silly season, but we just don’t participate!’ Brown winks to the international media.
“I think the things I’m trying to do is create stability, visibility and sustainability across all of our racing teams,” Brown continued. Earlier this year, McLaren suffered a loss when David Sanchez left the team, having been head of vehicle concept for the Woking-based team for just three months. McLaren is looking for a replacement, but Brown is happy with McLaren’s situation going forward. “We are in a great position,” the American emphasizes. ‘The Formula 1 team, we know who our drivers are, we know our team boss. Everything is going according to plan. We have implemented new technology, we have great sponsors.”
Brown thinks McLaren is stronger than some rivals
That stability and tranquility regarding the seats affects how the racing team operates, Brown thinks. “I think at a time when some teams are disrupted, not sure who’s going to drive where, the upcoming rule changes and the like, we’re in a pretty strong position looking to the future. We just want to focus on our work and continue what we are doing right now,” Brown said. McLaren had a better start to the season than last year and is third in the championship, with a strong lead over Mercedes. The British racing team aims to soon be able to fight with Ferrari, and ultimately to be on the heels of Red Bull.
Would you like to discuss? Click here to register.
