Helmut Marko’s Red Bull exit allowed Laurent Mekies to target Oscar Piastri

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Red Bull’s interest in Oscar Piastri shows that the team have adopted a new model following the departure of Helmut Marko, according to a report.

It emerged on Thursday morning that Red Bull are keen on Piastri, likely as a contingency plan if Max Verstappen leaves the team or retires from F1. Verstappen has made it known that he’s considering his future over his dissatisfaction with the new rules.

While that exact length of Piastri’s McLaren contract is unknown, it’s thought to run until around 2028. That means a huge payout may be required to make a deal viable.

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Red Bull would never have tried to sign Oscar Piastri while Helmut Marko was in charge

As reported by Motorsport IT, Marko insisted on a ‘clear-cut philosophy’ during his time in charge. He wanted to promote from within, pairing a ‘growing talent’ with a more ‘proven lead driver’.

Red Bull set up a de facto junior team when they bought Minardi in late 2005, and since then, they have almost exclusively signed drivers from within their own stable. 2020 acquisition Sergio Perez is a notable exception, but that move came out of ‘necessity’.

Now that Marko has left and Laurent Mekies in charge, it seems Red Bull are moving to a ‘more flexible’ model and embracing the ‘external market’. In this context, Piastri is seen as the ‘ideal candidate’.

Which McLaren driver will leave the team first?

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His podium at the Miami Grand Prix last time out was the 28th of his career in just his 72nd race. The 25-year-old has picked up nine victories so far and finished just 13 points behind world champion Lando Norris last season.

The obvious problem with Red Bull’s Oscar Piastri interest

There’s a small chance that Piastri could be an alternative to Isack Hadjar, but he’s more likely to be a Verstappen replacement.

Indeed, the mere presence of Verstappen would likely dissuade a driver like Piastri from joining Red Bull given his known superiority within the team.

But even if the four-time world champion departs, Piastri has little incentive to join. Given McLaren’s recent progress, he probably wouldn’t swap seats with anybody right now, not even the Mercedes drivers.

Red Bull also delivered an impressive upgrade in Miami but the Mercedes-powered cars still appear best placed to dominate the current rules cycle.

So, unless Piastri loses his seat, which is highly unlikely, Red Bull might have to move on to other targets. Reports last month suggested that Carlos Sainz is a more realistic target given Williams’ midfield anonymity.