McLaren CEO Zak Brown has once again cast light on his IndyCar outfit’s 2026 Indy 500 prospects following the Hungarian GP 1-2 finish in F1. In July this year, Brown teased a new driver as a potential fourth entry for next year’s Indianapolis Motor Speedway event.

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri secured a strong 1-2 finish for McLaren at Hungaroring. Norris secured the victory while Piastri had to settle for a close runner-up finish.

During his post-race interactions, Zak Brown was asked to touch upon his team’s IndyCar prospects regarding the signing of a new driver for the 2026 Indy 500, and in line with this, he added:

“It would be nice to get it done.”

In 2024 and at this year’s Indy 500 event, McLaren had the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson as its fourth entry. However, at the 2025 IndyCar Detroit GP, Brown hinted toward the team potentially signing a new driver for the 2026 event, Back then, he said:

“We’ve got a trick up our sleeves, and it would be so cool if it happens. This one would be unreal.”

Zak Brown was present at the Toronto IndyCar race recently, where Pato O’Ward secured a victory. While Brown has been teasing a new driver for the 2026 Indy 500 for quite some time, nothing concrete has come out of the McLaren camp (Arrow McLaren) yet.

In the 2025 Indy 500, the team’s fourth entry, Kyle Larson, secured an unfortunate DNF.

IndyCar Insider shuts down Zak Brown’s Indy 500 comments

Zak Brown made headlines with his 2026 Indy 500 new driver remarks, and his comment at the F1 Hungarian GP is the latest in this regard. However, quite recently, IndyCar insider Marshall Pruett shut down those claims via his podcast.

Pruett talked about it in detail and revealed how there were no concrete plans yet within Arrow McLaren regarding a new driver for the 2026 Indy 500.

“I’ve got a number of folks asking about this, so McLaren is, quote, move the needle name at IMS. Any chance that’s Robert Wickens? That’d be amazing if it was. Ah, knew nothing about this, had a friend show me the headline, said, ‘Hey what do you know?’ I’m like, ‘I know nothing’. Completely clueless. So I reached out to a friend at the team, who would know. And he said, there is nothing. There is no plan, there is no name, there is no test date, there is no anything.” 49:05 onwards.

McLaren’s IndyCar team has been performing well in the ongoing 2025 season, with Pato O’Ward currently in second place in the drivers’ standings. For 2026, it will be fascinating to see what the team eventually does with its fourth entry with Zak Brown determined to sign a big name.