Talk is increasingly pointing toward Lando Norris being the next teammate for Max Verstappen at Red Bull.
The two drivers are buddies, and Verstappen hinted in Monza that Norris’ existing McLaren contract is the only obstacle.
“Look, Lando is a great driver, there’s no doubt about that, and you can see his potential is growing,” Red Bull team boss Christian Horner said ahead of the Italian GP.
“But he’s a McLaren driver and you have to respect the agreements that are in place.”
Among those agreements is one with Sergio Perez, who is set to continue with Red Bull into next year—although Marko clarified it’s not a “job guarantee.”
“In ’25, we have one seat open and as you can imagine, there’s not a shortage of interest in that seat,” Horner said.
Speaking to Kleine Zeitung newspaper, Marko mentioned Norris’ current McLaren contract extends until 2025.
“But he is by far the strongest of the young drivers,” said the Austrian.
“His youthful nature would also suit him to Red Bull. We were close to signing him to Alpha Tauri, but that was a few years ago,” Marko revealed.
“At that time it also failed because of ongoing contracts.”
When asked about potentially buying out Norris’ McLaren contract, Marko unequivocally stated: “No, that is completely out of the question.
“Sergio Perez is currently fixed.”
