McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown has revealed that he’s going to “get to work” on a contract extension for Lando Norris, something he has a couple of seasons to sort out.
It was announced ahead of this weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix that rookie Oscar Piastri had signed a contract extension with McLaren, keeping him at the British side until the end of 2026.
The impressive Piastri will therefore enter the new power unit regulations with the Woking-based team, something Brown is clearly very happy about.
Brown would be even happier, though, if Norris was contracted to the team for the new engine regulations in 2026, with his current deal expiring in 2025.
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With Piastri secured for another three seasons, Brown now wants to sort a new deal for Norris, who has been linked to Red Bull multiple times.
“These guys aren’t cheap. We’ve got Lando for another couple [of] years, so we’ve got some time,” Brown told Sky Sports F1.
“I like our driver lineup, I love our driver lineup. So, great to get Oscar committed for the foreseeable future and we’ll get to work on Lando, but we’ve got some time.”
Focusing on Piastri, the rookie has taken F1 by storm this season, with him showing exactly why McLaren signed him from Alpine.
The former Formula 2 and Formula 3 Champion is having an extraordinary season, which looks set to end on a real high.
Piastri secured a front row start alongside Max Verstappen on Saturday at Suzuka, after qualifying in second place.
The Australian has very quickly been able to perform on a similar level to Norris, something which has convinced Brown that “there’s a lot more to come” from the 22-year-old.
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“I think there’s a lot more to come, which is the exciting part,” Brown continued.
“His maturity I think is what has been most impressive and his technical feedback and understanding. I think no one is surprised at the pace that he has, but he’s so mature, he’s very calm. He takes one session at a time, and come showtime, he’s right there.
“You can see his confidence is growing, because his Fridays now are becoming even more competitive than at the start of the year.
“Our driver lineup, of all the things we need to be competitive, I’m not worried about a driver lineup.”