Zak Brown’s Bold Claim: McLaren Has ‘World’s Greatest’ Driver Line-Up – Norris and Piastri Best in the Business”
The head of McLaren Racing, Zak Brown, has made a bold claim about the team’s driver line-up. He believes that Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are the “world’s greatest” drivers, surpassing even seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton and reigning world champion Max Verstappen.
While it is difficult to ignore the dominant forces of the past decade, Brown feels that Norris and Piastri represent something truly special for the future of McLaren. They may not have as much experience as Hamilton or Verstappen, but their potential is immense. And while their battle for glory with Red Bull and Mercedes may be tough, Brown has high hopes that his team can take the fight to the top. This is sure to be a fascinating narrative to follow in the coming years, as McLaren looks to take the next step and challenge for world titles once again.
But Brown believes that McLaren has everything in place to retain Norris’ services, given the team’s clear trajectory of improvement.
“I think he’s all in on the McLaren journey and I think the same as Piastri,” Brown added.
“They want to drive for a team that wins races and wins world championships, and they believe they have an opportunity to do that with McLaren in the not-too-distant future.”
While Red Bull may be monitoring Norris, Brown is aware that their drivers, Verstappen and Sergio Perez, are “tied down”, with the team having “no plans to change” their line-up.
Brown also believes that, even with the progress McLaren is making, that drivers will continue to be attracted to the lure of Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari, even if it means being in a second driver role.
“You’re always battling against a move to Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari,” he added.
“Maybe a second driver role, which doesn’t sound the most exciting thing but the allure of winning races and world championships for Ferrari, Mercedes and Red Bull is a pretty attractive thing for drivers.
But I don’t think the advantage those teams have is quite what it was five years ago. I think we’re now very competitive with them.”
One way that McLaren is also hoping to hold on to Norris long-term is by promising him the chance to be involved in an IndyCar programme, something he has expressed an interest in.
“The IndyCar option is one we continue to talk about with Lando,” said Brown.
“I think Lando would like to at some point drive an IndyCar.It will be interesting to see if Norris can break Nick Heidfeld’s record and score his first F1 win in the 2024 season. And McLaren, with Norris and Piastri, will be looking to take the fight to the likes of Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari.
With Norris expressing an interest in racing in IndyCar, it will be intriguing to see how this plays out alongside his Formula One career. And with the team now operating at a profit and at the ceiling of F1’s budget cap, McLaren could be on the way to achieving great things in the future. The sky is the limit for the Woking outfit.
