McLaren make 'years to come' Oscar Piastri prediction

McLaren CEO Zak Brown has no doubt that Oscar Piastri's "star will continue to rise" after witnessing the Australian come so close to becoming a Formula 1 champion last season.

Piastri appeared poised to become his country's first champion since Alan Jones in 1980 to lift the F1 drivers' title as he led for 15 rounds and six months, from the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in April until finally being deposed in Mexico in October.

When the curtain fell on the 24-race campaign, Piastri missed out by 13 points to McLaren team-mate Lando Norris, whilst even Red Bull's four-time champion Max Verstappen finished ahead by 11 points following a dramatic fall from grace over the closing stages.

There were also many moments of consternation for Piastri, in particular as he felt McLaren was favouring Norris, such as in the Italian and Singapore Grands Prix especially, and he made his feelings known over the team radio at the time.

Brown, though, is adamant that despite Norris' title triumph, Piastri deserves "immense credit" for his performance, and has faith his talent will be rewarded in the future, as he has always believed after luring him away from Alpine over three years ago.

"He drove an unbelievable season," said Brown, writing in an open letter this week to McLaren fans.

"It’s easy to forget that he has contested only three Formula 1 seasons to date. He drives with experience and skill that belies his years and conducts himself with the utmost professionalism and respect.

"We knew we had a star on our hands from the moment he arrived, and it has been a pleasure to watch him blossom into a title challenger in such short order.

"I have no doubt his star will continue to rise in the years to come, and I want to thank him for playing such a crucial role in delivering our second consecutive constructors’ championship under the Singapore floodlights, with six rounds to go."

McLaren facing shake-up

After winning those back-to-back constructors' titles, the difficulty for McLaren now is to defend again in the face of the biggest rule change in F1 history, as all-new cars and power units will grace the grid this season.

Although the cars have been in development for just over a year, the pecking order could change, a fact Brown is all too aware of, albeit with faith in his team led by Andrea Stella that it will still be a title contender.

"We are only two weeks into the new year, but we have been in the details of 2026 for a good while, and there is a lot to look forward to," added Brown.

"The reigning champion label counts for little when we are all faced with a regulatory reset. The new regulatory era in Formula 1 will bring new challenges as the competitive landscape evolves.

"But our aim is to build on the foundations that brought us success in 2024 and 2025 and maintain the high standards required to compete at the front.

"No one can possibly predict at this stage how the field will shape up in the opening races, but Andrea and his leadership team have been quietly working hard in the background for a long time now to give us the strongest possible chance to get off to a strong start."