McLaren wants to keep Oscar Piastri despite interest from Red Bull

Although Oscar Piastri has a long-term contract with McLaren, Red Bull would try to sign the 25-year-old if four-time champion Max Verstappen leaves the team at the end of this season, Autosport reported earlier this month.

The fact that a team showed interest in Piastri, who is competing in his fourth season in Formula 1, did not surprise McLaren CEO Zak Brown.

"I imagine there isn't a team on the grid that wouldn't want Oscar and Lando (Norris) driving for them," Brown said in a recent interview with The Athletic.

"My overall view, regardless of contracts, is that our job is to create an environment where our drivers don't want to race anywhere else, or where our employees and sponsors don't want to work with another team. I think there's a lot of talent within McLaren that other teams would like to have."

Since making his F1 debut with McLaren in 2023, Piastri has won nine grand prix and has become a key player in the team's success. The Australian failed to start in the first two races of the season, but finished second in the Japanese Grand Prix after leading the opening laps of the race.

"Yes, I think I am," Piastri told The Athletic, when asked if he felt he was in the right place to win a world championship in the future.

"Last year, and over the years, I think the confidence and proof of how we can take a car - and even a team, in a way - with potential and actually turn that potential into results, is more than enough for me to realize what this team is capable of."

"We have all the pieces of the puzzle we want and need. Now it's a matter of getting the job done and seeing how many championships we can win."

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Source: CNN