Oscar Piastri Dropped Hint on Team He Wants To Join Amid McLaren Exit Rumours

Oscar Piastri has dropped a huge hint about his Formula 1 future amid ongoing rumours that he could quit McLaren, despite still being in the hunt for the world title.

Although Piastri has suffered a drastic loss of form in recent months, his second-place finish at last weekend's Qatar Grand Prix means he is still in contention for the championship at the Abu Dhabi finale.

The Australian comes into the weekend as the outsider, trailing his McLaren teammate Lando Norris by 16 points, with Max Verstappen just 12 points behind the Briton.

That means for Piastri to have any chance of claiming a maiden world title, he must finish in the top two.

Even then, a win would not guarantee him the championship, as Norris would need to finish sixth or lower.

The last time Norris finished outside the top five, excluding the recent post-race disqualification from the Las Vegas GP, was in Azerbaijan back in September.

Last month, while Piastri was struggling for form, Swiss outlet Blick reported that the Australian was looking at a potential move away from McLaren.

That is despite Piastri signing a new contract in March, which will keep him at the team until at least 2028.

There is also speculation about a seat potentially opening up at Ferrari after next season, particularly with Lewis Hamilton arguably in the worst form of his motorsport career.

Now, an old Facebook post from Piastri has been recirculating on social media.

The post, from May 28, 2016, shows a young Piastri outside the Red Bull factory and another photo of a Red Bull racing car surrounded by trophies.

He captioned it: "One day..."

Talk of Piastri's possible desire to join Red Bull only intensified over the weekend following the Qatar Grand Prix.

After finishing second, Red Bull mechanics could be seen patting the McLaren driver on the back before he shook hands with race winner Verstappen.

For now, Piastri's focus will be on Sunday's race, as McLaren aim for their first Drivers' Championship since Hamilton's triumph in 2008.

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has confirmed the team will speak with both drivers ahead of this weekend's race about the possibility of using team orders.

Although Norris only needs to finish on the podium to secure the world championship, McLaren have continued to allow their drivers to race under the team's so-called 'papaya rules'.

The pair have collided a couple of times this season, but generally, they have avoided contact and maintained a harmonious relationship.

However, Stella will be wary that team orders may be required on Sunday to avoid handing Verstappen a record-equalling fifth successive world title.

He said: "I think whatever call we make in terms of using the collaboration of our drivers will have to follow some of our fundamental principles, which are foundational to our approach.

"We want to be fair to our drivers, we want to race with integrity, and we want to race in a way that doesn't surprise our drivers.

"So, before Abu Dhabi, there will be further conversation with Lando and Oscar.

"We will confirm our racing approach, but certainly what I can say is that if any of the drivers is in condition to pursue the quest to win the title, then we will respect this."