McLaren entering top level sportscar racing ‘a matter of when not if’

In brief

McLaren entering top level sportscar racing ‘a matter of when not if’ – Brown

McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown days that McLaren getting involved in top level sportscar competition like IMSA is a matter of ‘when’, not ‘if’.

The introduction of hypercars and LMDh classes into endurance sportscar racing in the World Endurance Championship and the IMSA series has seen a throng of manufacturers join with their own programmes – including Ferrari, Peugeot, BMW and Lamborghini among others.

Speaking on an episode of the Marshall Pruett podcast, Brown admitted McLaren’s participation in top level sportscar racing series like IMSA was something he felt the organisation should pursue.

“I really would like to get McLaren into top level sportscar racing,” Brown said. “I think we need to be there. I think it fits with our brand.

“I need to make sure that when – which is what I like to say versus ‘if’ we get involved – we need to be able to do it right and have everything else that we’re doing in a really good spot.

“I think it’s a few years away. We need to make a decision soon because we now know what we need to know in order to make a decision. It’s really dependent upon what else is going on in McLaren’s world as to the best time to enter.”

Stuck unimpressed Verstappen refused order

Max Verstappen’s refusal to follow an order from his Red Bull team in the Brazilian Grand Prix revealed a “lack of discipline”, according to former Formula 1 driver Hans-Joachim Stuck.

Red Bull told Verstappen to allow Sergio Perez to pass him on the final lap of the Brazilian Grand Prix, but the world champion refused. Stuck, who scored two podium finishes during his six-year F1 career, says Verstappen was wrong to disobey them.

“The first commandment in Formula 1 is to follow the team’s instructions unconditionally, because the drivers have signed a contract,” he told Eurosport.

Stuck said his former team principal Bernie Ecclestone shared his view of the incident. “He was very clear there,” he said. “If one of his drivers hadn’t followed such an instruction, Bernie would have thrown him out.”

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