McLaren Racing CEO Zac Brown has denied claims by Alex Palou that he never wanted to sign Oscar Piastri.
McLaren is suing four-time IndyCar champion Palou for more than $20 million in lost profits as a result of the 28-year-old Spaniard’s shocking U-turn after he signed a deal to drive for McLaren’s IndyCar team alongside his F1 turnaround role.
Palou claimed that Brown led him into believing he had a chance to race in F1 with McLaren before signing Piastri, following a legal battle to get the Australian out of his Alpine contract.
Two years ago, Palou declined to join IndyCar for McLaren in the 2024 season and remained with Chip Ganassi Racing. The long-running dispute between Parow and McLaren went to the UK High Court last week.
Palou told the court that he had promised Brawn he would help him find a seat in F1, and went so far as to claim that Brawn was not the one who made the decision to sign Piastri.
“I went to dinner with Zak near the MTC (McLaren Technology Center),” Parow told the court. “Zak told me that it wasn’t his decision to hire Oscar. He said it was (then) team manager Andreas Seidl’s decision.
“Zac told me that Piastri’s performance in 2024 will be evaluated against my performance.Zac said that from his point of view, my chances of winning an F1 seat are not affected by the Oscars.”
Palou is in a long-running dispute with McLaren
But Brown insisted he had made no such promise, undermining any suggestion that he had not agreed to a deal with Piastri.
“I’m not sure which of the allegations amused me more: the idea that I’m not the one making important decisions about the driver line-up or the suggestion that I didn’t agree to signing the very talented Oscar Piastri,” Brown told Reuters.
“Both allegations are patently ridiculous and anyone who follows our sport will see them firsthand.
“We have the absolute best driver duo on the F1 grid in Oscar and Lando and we couldn’t be more excited about their incredible performance and sportsmanship.”
“I’m excited to see some great racing for the rest of the season.”
McLaren won its second consecutive F1 constructors’ championship at the last Singapore Grand Prix.
Piastri holds a 22-point lead over McLaren teammate Lando Norris with six races remaining.
The race for the 2025 F1 Drivers’ Championship is set to resume this weekend at the United States Grand Prix in Austin.