McLaren's Zak Brown Denies Palou's Piastri Favouritism Allegations; Calls It 'Ludicrous'

Last Updated:October 14, 2025, 14:38 IST

Brown calls claims he opposed Oscar Piastri's signing and lacked input in McLaren's driver choices ludicrous, as McLaren pursues a 20 million dollar legal battle with Alex Palou.

McLaren's Zak Brown (X)

McLaren chief executive Zak Brown has angrily dismissed as “ludicrous" a suggestion that he opposed signing Oscar Piastri three years ago — and that the rookie’s recruitment was decided without him.

Brown made his stance clear in an interview with Reuters ahead of the U.S. Grand Prix in Austin, where Piastri leads the drivers’ standings.

“I’m not sure which allegation amused me more — the notion that I would not be the one making a key decision about our driver line-up, or the suggestion that I wasn’t on board with signing the hugely talented Oscar Piastri," Brown said.

“Both allegations are clearly ludicrous – and anyone who follows our sport will see straight through them."

What Palou told the court

The criticism stems from testimony given last week in a London High Court hearing by Alex Palou, the four-time IndyCar champion.

Palou — who had signed a contract with McLaren in 2022 but ultimately stayed in IndyCar and later fell out with McLaren — told the court that Brown had told him hiring Piastri “had not been his decision," and that the move was driven by former McLaren principal Andreas Seidl.

Palou also said Brown told him Piastri’s performance “would be evaluated against mine for the 2024 seat."

Seidl, who ran McLaren from January 2019 until December 2022, left the team as the hiring dispute unfolded.

Brown: Team decisions aren’t made without me

Brown pushed back on that version of events and said he had discussed driver options with Palou and others in late 2022. He added he had seen Piastri over the weekend and that the Australian laughed off the idea that Brown had no say in the hiring.

“We have the absolute best driver pairing on the F1 grid in Oscar and Lando — I could not be more thrilled with their incredible performance and their sportsmanship," Brown said.

“I’m excited for the awesome racing we’re going to see for the rest of the season."

The contractual row: McLaren seeks $20m

Beyond the headlines lies a substantial legal fight. McLaren is seeking about $20 million from Palou, arguing he breached the terms of the contract he signed in 2022 when he backed out of a planned move and stayed with Chip Ganassi Racing in IndyCar.

Palou has admitted breaching the agreement but contends he owes nothing; his lawyers say circumstances and representations by McLaren justify his decision.

The trial will continue, with the next hearing dates set and closing submissions due in November.

(with Reuters inputs)

Siddarth Sriram

After training in the field of broadcast media, Siddarth, as a sub-editor for News18 Sports, currently dabbles in putting together stories, from across a plethora of sports, onto a digital canvas. His long-term...Read More

After training in the field of broadcast media, Siddarth, as a sub-editor for News18 Sports, currently dabbles in putting together stories, from across a plethora of sports, onto a digital canvas. His long-term...

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News sports McLaren's Zak Brown Denies Palou's Piastri Favouritism Allegations; Calls It 'Ludicrous'

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