McLaren boss admits Verstappen would be ‘ideal’ team-mate

McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown has declared that reigning F1 champion Max Verstappen would be an 'ideal' team-mate.

The papaya F1 outfit have gone from strength to strength since emerging as the ones to watch in 2024, claiming their first constructors' crown since 1998 at the end of the season, continuing on a positive trajectory into the 2025 campaign.

As the championship returns following a short summer break, Brown's F1 outfit have already run away with the constructors' title, but the drivers' is all to play for with a McLaren 1-2 on the cards.

Heading into this weekend's Dutch Grand Prix, Oscar Piastri leads the standings, but team-mate Lando Norris is just nine points behind him after winning the Hungarian GP last time out.

But despite his team's success, Brown appears to be eyeing up F1 rival Max Verstappen, naming the four-time champion as his ideal team-mate in endurance racing.

Speaking to De Telegraaf in Amsterdam this week, Brown said: "Well, I would love to have Max as my team-mate in long-distance racing. Because he recently showed how fast he is there too, under a pseudonym, on the Nordschleife."

"Max is a great driver, a four-time champion for good reason. In any case, it's a pleasure for me to work with all the drivers in the McLaren programme. And with Max? Who knows, maybe one day," the 53-year-old concluded.

Verstappen's extracurriculars catch eye of F1 rival

As Brown's F1 squad have risen through the ranks, Verstappen's Red Bull team have gone through a tumultuous period, with new team principal Laurent Mekies facing a persistent second driver issue and the reality that they are unlikely to win either title this year.

Yet Verstappen has kept his spirits up by investing in his interests away from the F1 calendar, taking to the Nordschleife at the Nurburgring earlier this year under the now famous pseudonym, Franz Hermann.

The 27-year-old set an unofficial record took to the famous German circuit behind the wheel of a GT3 Ferrari, and after news of his outing gained traction in the media, Verstappen even released Franz Hermann merchandise.

But the stunt wasn't simply a cash grab for the Dutchman, he recently described driving GT3 cars as, 'a passion' of his, and after acquiring his platinum super licence from the FIA earlier this year, Verstappen could compete in endurance racing at the highest level of competition in the future.

McLaren will be entering the Hypercar class of the World Endurance Championship under Brown's watch in 2027, with the papaya squad setting their sights on the overall victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in a bid to achieve the triple crown of motorsport in one year.

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