Zak Brown Renews Attack on Red Bull's Multi-Team Ownership: 'We Want to Fight Everyone Equally'

McLaren CEO Zak Brown has once again turned up the heat on Red Bull's ownership of both Red Bull Racing and Racing Bulls. In an open letter marking McLaren's 1000th Grand Prix in Monaco, Brown argued that the sport's financial health now makes it unacceptable for one entity to control multiple teams, calling for true independence across the grid.

Why it matters:

Brown's ongoing campaign strikes at the heart of F1's governance. With the sport enjoying record revenues and stability, the question of whether multi-team ownership undermines competitive integrity is becoming harder to ignore. If the FIA and Liberty Media act, it could force a major restructuring of the Red Bull ecosystem and set a precedent for all future team ownership.

The details:

• Brown's open letter specifically addressed fans, arguing that alliances between teams "have the potential to cloud things" in technical, financial, and governance matters.
  • He wrote: "You, our fans, want to know that all 22 drivers are fighting each other equally as hard, and that the same rules apply to all 11 teams."
• The letter follows a previous direct appeal to FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem on the same topic, and a series of public statements by Brown.
• Brown has cited a specific on-track incident as evidence: Daniel Ricciardo's fastest-lap point theft in Singapore 2024, which helped Red Bull's sister team at the expense of McLaren's championship fight.
• He also referred to Mercedes' recent (now-abandoned) attempt to acquire a stake in Alpine, warning that such co-ownership risks compromising fairness even if technically permitted.

Looking ahead:

Brown's persistence suggests this issue will remain a key talking point in F1's political landscape. With Liberty Media and the FIA focused on growth, the pressure to address multi-team ownership is unlikely to fade.

• The next step could be a formal proposal to revise the Concorde Agreement's rules on ownership structures.
• For now, Red Bull has defended its model, citing the historical circumstances that allowed the two teams to survive. But as Brown put it: "Now that the sport is in tremendous health… it is time to move to a state of true independence."