F1 Expert Reveals Oscar Piastri ‘Rumour’ Circulating Amid McLaren Exit Talk

A Formula 1 expert has revealed the rumours he has heard about Oscar Piastri amid reports linking him with a move away from McLaren.

The 2025 season ended in disappointment for Piastri, who was the favourite to win the world title before the summer break.

However, the Australian endured a tough run of form, allowing Lando Norris to take control of the title race and also let Max Verstappen back into the fight.

In the end, Norris pipped Verstappen to the title by two points, with Piastri finishing third.

During the last part of the 2025 campaign, McLaren have often been accused of favouring Norris ahead of Piastri, something the team has denied throughout.

Speaking recently to SPORTbible, via Metaspins, Richard Hopkins, who worked as Head of Operations at Red Bull and was previously logistics manager at McLaren, touched on the Piastri rumours.

He said: "There are rumours of Oscar looking elsewhere, but there’s no better team at the moment. They’re world champions. Why wouldn’t he stay? At the moment, because of the regulation changes, McLaren are the best team right now because they’re the current world champions. But they might be the slowest team on the grid next year. With the regulation changes – engine and aero – it’s one of the biggest changes we’ve seen.

"We’ve seen aero changes with constant engine regulations, but to see engine and aero change at the same time has the potential to really mix the field up."

Oscar Piastri has been linked with a move away from McLaren. Image: Getty

Hopkins added: "Oscar could leave McLaren and step into somewhere unknown. But every seat is taken at the moment. The 2026 driver line-ups have been agreed, so for him to go somewhere, a team would have to kick somebody else out. I don’t know if that would happen.

"Why would he leave McLaren? You’re better off staying with the devil you know and seeing how it plays out in the first half of the season. If somebody rises to the top, chances are they’ll still be on top in 2027.

"I don’t think we’ll see anything happen. The conversation is out there now, and that’s just his team saying they recognise the situation isn’t perfect, so they’re on the market. That’s okay. But he’d be foolish if he did anything before the midpoint of 2026."