Zak Brown rubbishes Alex Palou's shocking claim about Oscar Piastri amid McLaren lawsuit

McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown has ridiculed Alex Palou's 'ludicrous' claim about Oscar Piastri amid the team's ongoing lawsuit against the four-time IndyCar champion. During a court hearing last week, Palou claimed that he was 'strung along' by Brown in 2022 with a promise to fulfil his F1 dream, but later found out that McLaren signed Oscar Piastri to drive Lando Norris.

While defending his breach of contract, the Spaniard claimed that in 2022, after McLaren announced Piastri's signing, Zak Brown informed him that he had no say in the Australian driver's signing. However, ahead of F1's US Grand Prix, Brown called the claim 'ludicrous'.

In an interview with Reuters, the McLaren boss responded to Alex Palou's claim, saying:

"I'm not sure which allegation amused me more -- the notion that I would not be the one making a key decision about our driver line-up, or the suggestion that I wasn’t on board with signing the hugely talented Oscar Piastri. Both allegations are clearly ludicrous – and anyone who follows our sport will see straight through them."

Zak Brown at the F1 Grand Prix Of Singapore - Source: Getty

Palou's statement last week made headlines in the motorsport world, wherein he alleged that Zak Brown wasn't involved in getting Oscar Piastri, who leads the F1 drivers' championship this year, from Alpine to McLaren.

"Zak told me it was not his decision to hire Oscar," the Chip Ganassi Racing driver said via MotorSport Magazine. "He said it was the decision of the team manager Andreas Seidl. Zak told me Piastri’s performance would be evaluated against mine for 2024." "Zak said that, from his point of view, my chance of getting the F1 seat was not affected by Oscar. However, I knew everything had changed. From that point on, I started to be more willing to stay with CGR in the future," he added.

Zak Brown's clear message about giving Alex Palou an "optionality to join F1"

Alex Palou at the NTT INDYCAR Series Snap-On Milwaukee Mile 250 - Source: Getty

McLaren is seeking over $20 million in damages from Alex Palou in the ongoing lawsuit. Since the hearing began in London, there have been unexpected twists and turns in the breach-of-contract storyline, including Zak Brown's internal McLaren communication via WhatsApp from 2023 being used as evidence.

But the core conflict lies in McLaren's attempt to gain $20 million in lost profit because of Palou's abrupt breach of contract, while the IndyCar champion's defense lies in justifying the breach. So far, the focal point has been the alleged F1 promise made by Brown to Palou, which the Spaniard highlighted was the only reason he agreed to join McLaren.

The McLaren boss laid out his first line of defense last week, highlighting that he had never guaranteed the IndyCar champion an F1 seat.

"I never strung along Alex," Zak Brown said via MotorSport Magazine. "I told him what the opportunities would be in F1. I never told him he would be under consideration for 2023. There was some optionality to join F1."

The hearings will seemingly take a break as Brown and McLaren head to Texas for the US Grand Prix this weekend. Over the last weekend, Alex Palou was back in America at the Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis to pound the anvil ahead of the Indianapolis Colts vs the Arizona Cardinals game.

Edited by Yash Kotak