McLaren kicked off the start of the latest Formula 1 silly season by tying down one of their most important assets.
Oscar Piastri extended his contract with McLaren on the eve of the Australian Grand Prix.
Piastri’s deal was described by McLaren as ‘multi-year’ with his previous agreement set to expire at the end of the 2026 season.
Last year’s F1 driver market saw plenty of changes on the grid both among the teams challenging for victories and the midfield.
Lewis Hamilton’s decision to join Ferrari set off a chain reaction and while Carlos Sainz was available as a free agent, Piastri still attracted some attention.
Guenther Steiner believes that Red Bull were definitely attempting to sign the Australian before he decided to commit his future to Andrea Stella’s team.
However, the £2.7bn-valued outfit led by Christian Horner had to settle for promoting Liam Lawson after deciding to part ways with Sergio Perez over the winter.
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Guenther Steiner sure Red Bull wanted to sign Oscar Piastri before signing McLaren deal
Steiner was asked why McLaren didn’t wait to offer Piastri a new contract until later in the season and said: “First of all, he believes in him like he believes in Lando.
“I mean, we need to give credit to Zak because he picked up drivers out of F2, both of them [are] very good.
“It will not get easier for Zak, or cheaper if he waits because somebody will want to pick up Oscar Piastri out of the other teams.
“He’ll be saying, ‘I’m happy with this team, they work well together, let’s get it done, let’s get over it and focus on going forward,’ because this year they’ve got a good car. In 2026, maybe they won’t!”
It was then put to Steiner that there were rumours about Red Bull sniffing around Piastri and he explained: “I’m pretty sure all the good teams which have a seat available next year, the Red Bull is one of them.
“Obviously with the connection with Mark Webber, Mark drove a long time for Red Bull so they have good relationships.
“They were for sure sniffing around, I’m sure about that one.”
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McLaren secure long-term future with Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris but face difficult short-term decision
Lando Norris signed a new contract with McLaren at the beginning of 2024 just before Hamilton announced his move to Ferrari.
McLaren appeared to anticipate something seismic coming in the driver market and didn’t want their prized asset to be involved in the speculation.
The Woking-based team now have two of the best drivers on the grid secured for the next few seasons but they’ve got to navigate some tricky decisions in the meantime.
Piastri was given team orders by McLaren during the Australian Grand Prix as he rapidly approached Norris while he was leading the race.
Although McLaren’s reasoning was fair at the time, it’s not something Piastri will want to get into the habit of being on the other end of in the future.
Piastri does have an exit clause in his McLaren deal which might entice Red Bull to consider another move in the future but there’s a long way to go before that comes into play.
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