McLaren in astonishing bid to 'sign Valentino Rossi'

Seven-time MotoGP champion Valentino Rossi has been named as the racer Zak Brown was targeting for the 2026 Indy 500 for McLaren.

McLaren’s stateside presence Arrow McLaren, recently announced that Ryan Hunter-Reay will compete alongside full-time drivers Pato O’Ward, Nolan Siegel and Christian Lundgaard for the iconic Indianapolis 500 in May next year.

Hunter-Reay, nicknamed ‘Captain America’, won the Indianapolis 500 in 2014 and the IndyCar Series championship in 2012, enjoying a career in the series that has spanned two decades.

However, the 44-year-old was not the only driver in Brown’s sights, and according to motorsport journalist Jenna Fryer, a major name was also the target of the McLaren boss.

In a social media post on X, Fryer simply wrote: "Now that it didn’t happen, the ‘huge’ Indy 500 one-off entry that Zak Brown was pursuing was…."

She then shared a GIF of legendary rider Rossi, suggesting that Brown and McLaren had pursued the seven-time champion for the 2026 Indy 500.

McLaren’s Indy 500 bid for Rossi

Earlier this year, Brown teased the racing star they had in mind to fill the fourth car in 2026 and told IndyStar that the team were attempting to orchestrate a rookie oval test for a driver he did not wish to reveal.

"We’ve got a trick up our sleeves, and it would be so cool if it happens. This one would be unreal," Brown said at the time.

While this signing evidently has not materialised, it would have been a marvellous coup to acquire one of the biggest names in motorsport and one of the calibre of Rossi.

The Italian MotoGP rider, nicknamed ‘The Doctor’, is widely considered one of the greatest racers of all time and altogether is a nine-time Grand Prix motorcycle racing world champion.

Rossi remains the only rider to win world championships in 125cc, 250cc, 500cc and MotoGP, and won four MotoGP titles in a row between 2002-2005.

Much like Lewis Hamilton in F1, Rossi has transcended his racing discipline to become a world-renowned and recognisable figure in sport; but it seems traversing over to IndyCar remains a fantasy for motorsport fans.

In recent years, Rossi has turned his attention to sportscar racing, competing in the World Endurance Championship in 2024 and 2025 in the LMGT3 class, where he has picked up four podiums with Team WRT.

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