Red Bull in talks with McLaren superstar for a potential switch: Reports

As per reports, the Red Bull F1 team is currently in talks with McLaren F1 driver Oscar Piastri for a potential switch in the future. The young Aussie driver has impressed everyone with his performances on the track in the last 18 months as he has showcased immense speed while against as much experienced teammate Lando Norris.

Despite not being in contention for the championship like Norris in 2024, Piastri has managed to win on two occasions and has never shied away from making an impression in the wheel-to-wheel combats against several drivers.

The 23-year-old, who was previously an Alpine Academy driver, started racing in F1 last year with McLaren and quickly signed a contract extension with them that would see with for the Woking-based outfit until 2026.

However, Red Bull team advisor Helmut Marko told F1-Insider that Oscar Piastri's manager and former F1 driver Mark Webber showcased an interest in the Austrian outfit. He said:

“Let’s put it this way. Mark Webber [Piastri’s manager] is looking for intensive dialogue.”

It was not reported who would the young Aussie driver be partnering with if he were to join the Milton-Keynes outfit in 2026, given Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez are both under the scanner for different reasons. However, neither Piastri nor his manager Webber have commented on any such reports publicly.

Red Bull team advisor chimes in on Sergio Perez's future

Helmut Marko stated that Sergio Perez's future with the Austrian team would be decided at the end of the season despite the Mexican driver having a contract with them until the end of 2025.

He told F1-Insider:

“Perez may have a contract, but Formula 1 is a meritocracy. If the performance is not right, even contracts are useless. At the end of the season, we will sit down together and decide who is the best team-mate for Verstappen at Red Bull.”

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner too emphasized needing the Mexican to deliver for the remainder of the season, saying to Motorsportweek:

“Look Ferrari, again, congratulations to them this weekend. They’ve been very, very strong. And they’ve got two drivers that are competing at the front. McLaren, likewise, their drivers, there’s not a big deficit between them. So, you know, that’s where we really need for the Constructors to have Checo come into play.”

Sergio Perez is the only driver out of the top four teams to have not won a race in the 2024 season and has seen a massive drop in his form, ever since the Imola Grand Prix earlier in the season. Perez is currently at P8 in the driver's championship with 150 points to his name.