Oscar Piastri has been tipped to join Red Bull following a bombshell claim that his manager Mark Webber is not happy with his situation at McLaren.
And there could be a vacant seat with Max Verstappen’s future up in the air.
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A swap deal has been mooted ever since Verstappen’s longtime race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase was confirmed to be moving to McLaren at the end of the year.
Now Fox Sports’ Jessica Yates has tipped Piastri to move the other way, suggesting Webber’s links to Red Bull could prove to be a big factor.
“I don’t think it will be a straight swap but I could see Oscar Piastri ending up at Red Bull,” said Yates on MotorRacing360 on Kayo Sports.
“I think that makes a lot of sense. In car racing where there’s smoke there’s fire.
“Mark Webber is a shrewd operator, he’s got very close connections with that team.
“If that’s out there I think it’s probably happening behind the scenes.
“I don’t think it indicates Max is going to McLaren necessarily but what I think it indicates is that they’re not happy there.
“And that McLaren have probably put all their eggs in Lando’s basket, the writing’s on the wall, depending on how this year shakes out.”
Piastri’s future has been a hot topic in recent weeks, fuelled by the claim Webber is not happy with his situation at McLaren.
Former F1 driver Juan Pablo Montoya shared his insight into Webber and hinted at a potential swap deal involving Verstappen.
“From what I’m hearing Mark Webber is not happy the way things are going for Oscar at McLaren,” Montoya told Betpack.
“A lot of times people that look after drivers will run a story like that just to stir up the pot and put pressure on the team.
“Piastri would find a seat anywhere. There’s a suggestion that Max and Piastri could do a straight swap. That makes some sense.
“Webber raced for Red Bull before. He knows Red Bull. So that would be a sensible thing.
“That would be a logical thing to do. The question is, would McLaren be comfortable spending the money that Max would want?”
Piastri stated he is happy at McLaren in a recent appearance on the High Performance Podcast, confirming there is no ill will after he lost the F1 championship to teammate Lando Norris last year.
He has also shared his optimism in his team and the car following a difficult start to this season, following two podium finishes in his last two races.