Zak Brown ended speculation over a potential exit clause in Lando Norris' contract by declaring that it does not exist.
Norris has been with McLaren for his whole Formula 1 career so far and has enjoyed some strong success in that time. He has comfortably established himself as one of the most talented drivers on the grid and has several podiums to his name.
An F1 race victory continues to elude him, though, and that is also an indicator that he might be growing a little frustrated. Norris has made it clear his goals include winning races and world championships and so his team needs to be able to provide those opportunities.
It looked as though that might be on the way, with McLaren making strong progress to the point where they looked ready to challenge the 'big three'. But strong results were few and far between last year and things are not looking great for the current season either.
Norris signed a new contract at the start of 2022, just before McLaren's stuttering began. It means he is tied down until the end of the 2025 season, unless there was part of that deal which included a mechanism which the Brit might be able to use to get out of it earlier.
But chief executive Brown says that such a mechanism does not exist. "He has zero exit clauses," said the American when asked about it by Sky Sports ahead of this weekend's Australian Grand Prix, at which McLaren are hoping to score their first points of the year.
"Ultimately, when his contract is next up, if we are not performing and he doesn't feel he can win races and can compete for the championship, then I think anybody, driver or team member for that matter [would consider leaving], we are all here to win.
"He has got a contract with us and, most importantly, he is very happy here and he sees the progress that we are making, and he is a team player. So, even contracts aside, it is about that he is in a happy environment, he is along for the journey, and we have got some time to prove to him that we are going to give him a car capable of winning.
"Right now it is pretty easy but if we are sitting here in two years' time and his contract is nearing the end, then it is a different situation if we are not performing and I would understand him going 'I need to get into a winning race car'. But, right now, I think we are all focused on working together to get that car so I think it is too early to be worried about anything other than having a good weekend."
