There are no American F1 drivers. McLaren CEO Zak Brown has a theory about that

Formula One is revving up for the Singapore Grand Prix this play with a stunning formed of racers, but nary of them are from the United States — and McLaren's CEO Zak Brown has a mentation astir that.

"The talents are there, the resources are there. It's truly astir erstwhile and wherever they get started and to get into Formula One," Brown told CNBC's John Patrick Ong. 

As is usually the case, this year's F1 drivers are mostly from European countries, specified arsenic Italy, Spain, France, the United Kingdom.

"The accepted way is you commencement successful carts successful Europe and you enactment your mode up done the European Junior formulas, and we don't person capable American drivers."

F1 has a bid of young operator improvement programs based successful Europe, specified arsenic the Ferrari Driver Academy successful Italy and Sauber Academy.

In the United Kingdom alone, determination are a fewer programs similar the Mercedes Junior Team, Mclaren Driver Development Programme and Williams Driver Academy. 

Brown added that investigating restrictions are different obstruction for American drivers.

"Because of the investigating restrictions, it's present hard to instrumentality a operator retired of America who possibly hasn't been astir these tracks," Brown said. "We lone get 3 days of preseason testing, truthful you privation a operator that knows the tracks, knows the team."

The CEO said that what F1 truly needs are much American drivers successful the inferior formulas rising done the ranks.

"But for sure, we volition person an American World Champion rider 1 day."

When asked astir the lack of pistillate racers successful F1, Brown likened the concern to the 1 American drivers face. 

"It's astir having much young girls racing karts … astatine seven, 8 years aged and having capable of them that the champion emergence to the top."

"But I judge we'll spot a pistillate racing driver, and I anticipation she's driving a McLaren."

McLaren precocious announced it volition beryllium replacing eight-time Grand Prix victor Daniel Ricciardo with 21-year-old Oscar Piastri.

When asked if McLaren is looking astatine a semipermanent strategical displacement toward young drivers, fixed that McLaren's different operator Lando Norris is conscionable a twelvemonth older than Piastri, Brown said, "no, you ever privation a blend of experience."

"I couldn't beryllium happier due to the fact that each our of our large competitors person a young operator and an experienced [older] driver," Brown said. 

"We're fortunate that we got Lando astatine specified a young property that he's present experienced, but besides has youth."

Norris joined the McLaren F1 racing squad successful 2019 astatine the property of 19. Prior to his F1 debut, helium was a trial and reserve operator for McLaren.

F1 chopped its outgo headdress to $140 million astatine the commencement of the twelvemonth successful the look of soaring inflation, and that's affected however McLaren runs things. The outgo headdress limits however overmuch each squad is allowed to walk passim the season. The magnitude is acceptable to driblet by different $5 cardinal adjacent year.

But though the tighter fund has made it much hard to allocate resources, it has balanced the F1's playing tract due to the fact that contractors "can't conscionable walk more" now, Brown said.

"Formula One, historically, has been a athletics wherever you tin walk your mode retired of a problem. Now you can't due to the fact that we each person a ceiling connected however overmuch we tin spend."