– Formula 1 World Champion Lando Norris has extended his McLaren contract until 2030 and could imagine driving his entire career for the traditional team. Teammate Oscar Piastri has not yet made a comparable commitment, which is now once again sparking speculation about the Australian’s future.
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Piastri’s future at McLaren was already questioned in the summer when rumors spread that Max Verstappen was negotiating a move from Red Bull to the Woking team. Ultimately, these reports proved to be a negotiation tactic by Verstappen’s management, which then concluded a contract extension with Red Bull.
Unlike Norris, a contract extension does not currently seem to be an issue for Piastri. “I’m well taken care of for now,” Piastri told the media in Monza, including Motorsport-Total.com, when the question about his contract status was raised again.
“I mean, mine still runs for quite a while, so there is no rush to start these talks, but I think it’s good. It’s no surprise at all: [Norris] just won the World Championship with the team, and the team has won the Constructors’ Championship twice.”
Piastri’s contract probably runs until the end of 2028 anyway
“I feel like we have many of the right puzzle pieces here in the team,” says Piastri. “This year was obviously a bit tougher than the last two, but hopefully we get back on track to be able to win races or at least fight for victories.”
Photo gallery: The contract durations of current Formula 1 drivers
“It’s obviously good for the team to have this stability.” Speaking of stability: The exact contract duration of Piastri at McLaren is not known. His original contract, which he signed in 2023 when he joined the team, would have expired at the end of this season.
However, early last year the Australian signed a “multi-year” extension, which reportedly runs at least until the end of 2028. His statement that he still has plenty of time to explore his options is therefore quite justified.
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Furthermore, the contract durations of Norris and Piastri are not quite synchronized. The current world champion made his Formula 1 debut with McLaren in 2019 and last signed a “multi-year” extension in 2024, which was assumed to run until the end of 2027.
Piastri: Contract durations now hardly meaningful
“I don’t think [Norris’ long-term contract extension] changes much for me,” says Piastri, who is not a big fan of long-term contract extensions anyway. “It’s probably generally better for us drivers that there is a bit more stability overall.
“But Max had a contract the whole time, and still, in the last two or three years, his contract was discussed almost every year. I’m sure there are clauses in these contracts in both directions at various points.”
“So I would be surprised if there were any massive contracts that offer no room for maneuver from either the team or the driver side,” says the Australian, who can still understand the reason. “I think it shows the mutual commitment to each other.”
“That’s a good thing if it works like that, and it simply shows the intention to want to work together and that it should work, rather than just a one- or two-year contract,” adds Piastri. “Even a two-year contract is not that short, but a one-year contract …”
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“Of course, it’s nice to have a bit more certainty about how things will go. And if things continue to go between you and the team as you hope, then it’s nice if this framework is already set.”
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