Red Bull Racing is reportedly keeping close tabs on McLaren’s Oscar Piastri as a potential driver acquisition for 2027, according to Italian outlet Motorsport.com. The Milton Keynes-based team’s interest stems from ongoing uncertainty surrounding Max Verstappen’s long-term future, particularly given the world champion’s vocal criticism of Formula 1’s current technical regulations and his apparent dissatisfaction with various aspects of the sport.
While Verstappen’s immediate future largely depends on Red Bull’s competitive performance throughout 2026, the team appears to be developing contingency plans. The Miami Grand Prix provided encouragement with successful updates, but Red Bull management recognizes the need for alternative strategies should their star driver eventually seek new challenges elsewhere in the sport.
Securing Piastri would present significant challenges, as the Australian talent remains contracted to McLaren through 2027. However, Formula 1’s transfer market history demonstrates that determined drivers and teams can often negotiate exits from existing agreements. The situation is further complicated by Piastri’s management relationship with Mark Webber, the former Red Bull driver who now serves as the young Australian’s manager and is reportedly exploring various future options.
The potential Piastri pursuit represents a strategic shift for Red Bull under team principal Laurent Mekies, who favors a more flexible approach to driver recruitment compared to Helmut Marko’s traditional philosophy of exclusively promoting talent through the team’s junior development program. This marks a notable evolution in Red Bull’s long-standing commitment to nurturing drivers from their academy system rather than acquiring established talent from rival teams.
Currently, Red Bull’s interest remains exploratory rather than concrete, primarily because Verstappen has shown no definitive signs of planning an exit from the team. However, should circumstances change unexpectedly, the team appears positioned to act quickly with multiple potential candidates under consideration beyond Piastri as they prepare for various scenarios in the evolving driver market landscape.