McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown sent a formal letter to the FIA this week calling for rule changes that would prohibit shared ownership structures between competing Formula 1 teams. The communication, confirmed by multiple paddock sources, arrives as Max Verstappen's contract situation at Red Bull continues generating questions about team stability and potential cross-organization entanglements.
Brown's letter specifically targets governance frameworks that could allow a single entity or investor group to hold stakes in multiple constructors. No current ownership structure violates existing regulations, but the McLaren executive is pushing for explicit prohibition before any such arrangement emerges. The timing is deliberate. Red Bull's internal management friction over the past twelve months—Christian Horner's February investigation, the subsequent departure of design chief Adrian Newey, ongoing Jos Verstappen tensions—has created the first sustained conversation about whether the three-time reigning champion might consider alternatives before his 2028 contract expires. McLaren, Mercedes, and Ferrari have all been named in paddock speculation.
The governance concern is structural, not immediate. Formula 1's current Concorde Agreement, which runs through 2025, contains no explicit language preventing an investment fund or holding company from acquiring minority or majority positions in multiple teams. The sport's $20 billion valuation has attracted sovereign wealth funds, private equity groups, and family offices sizing franchise-style entry points. Brown's letter argues that any shared financial interest between competitors—even passive investment without operational control—creates irreconcilable conflicts around technical cooperation, driver contracts, and prize-money negotiations. He is not wrong. The FIA's governance manual already restricts personnel movement between teams during a season and mandates financial separation for engine suppliers who also race. Brown wants ownership held to the same standard.
Why this matters now: Verstappen's contract includes performance clauses and exit mechanisms that remain closely guarded but widely acknowledged. Red Bull has won 61 of 74 races since the start of 2022, but the team's off-track volatility has made paddock conversations about succession planning respectable rather than speculative. If a major investment group were to hold positions in both Red Bull and a rival constructor, Verstappen's potential move becomes a boardroom decision with fiduciary complications rather than a clean driver-team negotiation. Brown's letter is preemptive rule-making disguised as competitive principle.
McLaren has specific commercial reasons to care. The team secured $863 million in new investment from Ares Management and MSP Sports Capital between 2020 and 2022, diluting Brown's direct influence but creating board-level oversight that values long-term franchise appreciation. A Verstappen signing would be worth an estimated $40 million annually in incremental sponsorship revenue and constructor prize money based on third-party valuations circulated during last year's Mercedes talks. If that negotiation involves working around shared ownership structures, McLaren's institutional investors want clarity now, not during a 2026 transfer window when the sport's new engine regulations reset competitive order.
The FIA's response timeline is unclear. The governing body's World Motor Sport Council meets next in March 2025, but Concorde Agreement amendments require unanimous team approval, and Red Bull's commercial interests may not align with McLaren's governance preferences. Brown's letter does not name Red Bull explicitly, but paddock observers note that Red Bull Racing and AlphaTauri—now rebranded as Visa Cash App RB—already operate under common ownership by Red Bull GmbH, a structure grandfathered under existing rules and exempt from Brown's proposed prohibition.
What to watch: FIA acknowledgment of the letter, expected within two weeks. Any coordinated response from other team principals, particularly Toto Wolff at Mercedes and Fred Vasseur at Ferrari, both of whom have made recent comments about governance clarity. Red Bull's public position on ownership restrictions, which Christian Horner will likely be forced to address during pre-season testing in Bahrain in late February. And whether Brown's letter includes draft regulatory language, which would signal that McLaren's legal team has already war-gamed the amendment process with other constructors.
Verstappen's contract status makes this letter read differently than it would have eighteen months ago. Brown is not writing about hypotheticals.
The takeaway
Brown's FIA letter preempts governance gaps as Verstappen speculation and institutional F1 investment create cross-ownership risk scenarios.
mclarenfiagovernancezak brownred bullverstappen
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