Formula 1 team would turn down £50m offer from Red Bull for 24-year-old driver
The Formula 1 team rejected Red Bull’s £50m bid for the 24-year-old driver.
His contract may not expire until the end of 2025, but Lando Norris is still one of the hottest drivers on the F1 market and Red Bull’s offer could be rejected this year under the right conditions.
McLaren will rely on Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to deliver positive results until 2023. But on The Race Podcast, Scott Mitchell-Malm and Edd Straw discussed the possibility of the 24-year-old making a dramatic move to the most dominant team on the grid.
Transfers are rare in Formula 1 and teams usually wait until a driver’s contract expires to bring him in. Piastre was the last driver to follow this path when he was kicked out of the Alpine Academy to join McLaren.
With Christian Horner and Helmut Marko deciding the team needs to go in a completely different direction, Red Bull’s bid could be his teammate Lando Norris. Sergio Perez is out of contract at the end of 2024 and while there are many drivers who would like to replace him, they may not be the perfect fit.
The 24-year-old Englishman could be that man, but he looks unlikely to be released from Andrea Stella’s squad before this contract is up. Red Bull had to make a big offer to secure Norris.
Discussing who will be Verstappen’s team-mate in 2025, Mitchell-Malm said: “Can we jump in quickly because I think we should discuss this even if it’s not approved?
“Can we completely rule out Red Bull paying to buy Lando Norris’ contract? His team-mate Edd Straw replied: “There’s no denying they’re trying to do it, but how much will it cost McLaren?” Maybe, if you have a lot of money. Michel-Malm: “I think it will add another 50 million pounds.”
Then Straw said, “But why? I don’t think McLaren wants to sell Norris at that price. I think it should sell a lot more. “I think Red Bull is willing to pay a lot of money, but I look at it and think: yes [Oscar] Piastri has had a good start. He still needs to improve a bit in terms of performance in the tire race. Management It’s totally normal for a beginner and I’m sure he is too.
“I think the price at McLaren might be too high. I think this is the last year of Norris’ contract. I think that might play a part.”
Red Bull’s offer of around £50m for Norris will certainly give McLaren something to think about. But despite all that money, no driver can replicate his skills in that car.
McLaren may be comfortable with Piastri leading the team in the future, but it is too early to put the Aussie in that position at this stage. Verstappen and Norris are close and he admitted he would hire him if he was the current team principal.
There is a month of the season left and more adjustments and considerations to be made before then.
