Piastri panic? McLaren boss still chasing Verstappen dream

McLaren boss Zak Brown has spent most of the 2026 season ensuring that a black cloud hangs over Oscar Piastri's head amid relentless speculation the Aussie driver is on the outer.

It all began when Brown made it public that Max Verstappen would be welcome at the team as his contract talks with Red Bull appeared to stall.

Paddock rumours went into over drive with a potential driver switch between Red Bull and McLaren on the cards.

That was until Verstappen agreed to a contract extension with Red Bull through to the end of 2030, but this is F1, contracts mean very little. The sport is second to none on the fickle front.

But Verstappen's pen to paper did, at the very least, come as a relief to Piastri fans as it gave a little more surety to his future in the sport.

That was until Brown was interviewed ahead of this weekend's Azerbaijan Grand Prix where he said the Lando Norris - Verstappen dream was still in his mind.

“I spoke to Max a couple of times last summer. Simply because I wanted to get to know him better," he told De Telegraaf.

“If I had to use one word to describe him now, it would be a word that wouldn’t have occurred to me before those conversations. Namely: charming. I bet no one who doesn’t know him well would describe him that way. But I’m really impressed by him. A racer through and through.

“The talks were more exploratory, to get to know each other better. Because you never know what the future will bring.

“But I came away much more impressed than I had expected, from an individual standpoint. I feel like: I can really go racing with this guy. Because I hate racing against him.

“The door is still wide open for Max. For 2028, 2029, or whatever year, I enjoyed getting to know him better and would love to work with him someday.”