"The sport's now moved on to an equal playing field": McLaren boss Zak Brown doubles down on his objection to Red Bull having two teams in F1

McLaren team boss Zak Brown once again spoke up against Red Bull having two teams on the F1 grid.

Red Bull not only has its own team; it also owns Visa CashApp RB (formerly AlphaTauri). Hence, Brown feels having two teams on the grid gives the Austrian giants a massive advantage in the sport, something the FIA should look into.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Brown stated that the F1 grid is so close in terms of performance that the need of A and B teams are no longer needed.

"The sport's now moved on to an equal playing field. So to have A-B relationships, to have co-ownership of two teams, it's not what the fans expect. So the FIA needs to do something about it."

Initially, the McLaren boss claimed that he was speaking for the wider interest of the sport, rather than being paranoid. While he admitted that having two teams 15 years ago was acceptable due to massive gaps in the grid, it should not be the case now.

"I'm speaking in the wider interest of the sport. If you look at every other major sport, you are not allowed to own two teams. I'd even go further, you know," he said.

"There are A-B team relationships, and when these started 15 years ago, it was because there was a huge gap between the top teams and the bottom teams. Now that there is this great budget cap in place, all 10 teams are pretty much running to the cap. It's an equal playing field," he added.

Visa CashApp RB is so heavily linked with Red Bull that they have exchanged several drivers in the past and will also exchange some car parts for the 2024 F1 season.

---

A look into McLaren boss' first jibe at Red Bull having two teams in F1

Zak Brown's first attack towards Red Bull having two teams took place in December 2023.

In an open letter on mclaren.com, he wrote about fairness in F1 and indirectly took a jibe at the Austrian-British giants by stating how some companies have two teams on the grid. He further added that it is an 'unhealthy situation' and that both teams will have more data and even parts to share.

Brown wrote:

"It’s an unhealthy situation because it impacts decisions made both on and off the track. Whether it’s a case of having access to more data, sharing components/personnel, or even having influence over a strategic vote, it’s not in the spirit of the regulations."

As of now, Red Bull is the only company to have two teams on the grid.